Integrating Emergency Management and Disaster Behavioral Health identifies the most critical areas of integration between the profession of emergency management and the specialty of disaster behavioral health, providing perspectives from both of these critical areas, and also including very practical advice and examples on how to address key topics. Each chapter features primary text written by a subject matter expert from a related field that is accompanied by a comment by another profession that is then illustrated with a case study of, or a suggested method for, collaboration. - Addresses the current state of the collaboration between the emergency management and disaster behavioral health communities as presented from pioneers in their respective fields - Focuses on practical examples of what works and what doesn't - Stresses both legal and ethical considerations and the public-private partnerships that are important for leadership in disaster situations - Covers Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs) and risk communication

In the devastation that follows a major disaster, there is a need for multiple sectors to unite and devote new resources to support the rebuilding of infrastructure, the provision of health and social services, the restoration of care delivery systems, and other critical recovery needs. In some cases, billions of dollars from public, private and charitable sources are invested to help communities recover. National rhetoric often characterizes these efforts as a "return to normal." But for many American communities, pre-disaster conditions are far from optimal. Large segments of the U.S. population suffer from preventable health problems, experience inequitable access to services, and rely on overburdened health systems. A return to pre-event conditions in such cases may be short-sighted given the high costs - both economic and social - of poor health. Instead, it is important to understand that the disaster recovery process offers a series of unique and valuable opportunities to improve on the status quo. Capitalizing on these opportunities can advance the long-term health, resilience, and sustainability of communities - thereby better preparing them for future challenges. Healthy, Resilient, and Sustainable Communities After Disasters identifies and recommends recovery practices and novel programs most likely to impact overall community public health and contribute to resiliency for future incidents. This book makes the case that disaster recovery should be guided by a healthy community vision, where health considerations are integrated into all aspects of recovery planning before and after a disaster, and funding streams are leveraged in a coordinated manner and applied to health improvement priorities in order to meet human recovery needs and create healthy built and natural environments. The conceptual framework presented in Healthy, Resilient, and Sustainable Communities After Disasters lays the groundwork to achieve this goal and provides operational guidance for multiple sectors involved in community planning and disaster recovery. Healthy, Resilient, and Sustainable Communities After Disasters calls for actions at multiple levels to facilitate recovery strategies that optimize community health. With a shared healthy community vision, strategic planning that prioritizes health, and coordinated implementation, disaster recovery can result in a communities that are healthier, more livable places for current and future generations to grow and thrive - communities that are better prepared for future adversities.

Disasters such as the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Indian Ocean Tsunami, and Hurricane Katrina illustrate the salience and complexity of disasters. Both scholars and practitioners therefore agree that we must take a more proactive and holistic approach to emergency management, which should logically be derived from a sound understanding of the academic literature and the most pressing concerns facing professionals in the field today. Disciplines, Disasters and Emergency Management reviews what is known about catastrophic events from the standpoint of various academic areas of study. The introdu.

This book presents a decade of advances in the psychological, biological and social responses to disasters, helping medics and leaders prepare and react.

It is becoming increasingly common for psychiatrists to be among the first responders when disaster strikes. More than 800 psychiatrists are believed to have responded to the 9/11 attacks. The first clinical manual on the best practices for helping those affected by disaster, Disaster Psychiatry: Readiness, Evaluation, and Treatment offers an explicit and practical discussion of the evidence base for recommendations for psychiatric evaluation and interventions for disaster survivors. Disaster is defined by the World Health Organization as a severe disruption, ecological and psychosocial, that greatly exceeds a community's capacity to cope. This manual takes an "all-hazards" approach to disasters and has application to natural occurrences such as earthquakes and hurricanes; accidental technological events such as airplane crashes; and willful human acts such as terrorism. The field of disaster psychiatry is more important than ever, in response to disasters such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Today, disaster psychiatry encompasses a wide spectrum of clinical interests, ranging from public health preparations and early psychological interventions to psychiatric consultation to surgical units and psychotherapeutic interventions to alleviate stress in children and families after school shootings, hurricanes, or civil conflict. Although disaster mental health is still a young field, research is gradually yielding methods for accurately identifying valid relationships among preexisting risk factors, postdisaster mental health problems, and effective interventions. With its practical approach to readiness, response, and intervention and its focus on evidence-based recommendations for psychiatric evaluation and interventions, Disaster Psychiatry: Readiness, Evaluation, and Treatment is an invaluable manual for educator and student alike. The manual draws on a variety of sources, including the peer-reviewed scientific literature, the clinical wisdom imparted by front-line psychiatrists and other mental health professionals, and the experiences of those who have organized disaster mental health services, including the American Psychiatric Association and Disaster Psychiatry Outreach. Each chapter provides clear and concise information and in-depth review, followed by helpful study questions and answers. This book has been developed to give professionals the knowledge they need to respond swiftly and appropriately when disaster strikes.

A resource for public officials on the basic tenets of effective communications generally and on working with the news media specifically. Focuses on providing public officials with a brief orientation and perspective on the media and how they think and work, and on the public as the end-recipient of info.; concise presentations of techniques for responding to and cooperating with the media in conveying info. and delivering messages, before, during, and after a public health crisis; a practical guide to the tools of the trade of media relations and public communications; and strategies and tactics for addressing the probable opportunities and the possible challenges that are likely to arise as a consequence of such communication initiatives. Ill.

Disasters and public health emergencies can stress health care systems to the breaking point and disrupt delivery of vital medical services. During such crises, hospitals and long-term care facilities may be without power; trained staff, ambulances, medical supplies and beds could be in short supply; and alternate care facilities may need to be used. Planning for these situations is necessary to provide the best possible health care during a crisis and, if needed, equitably allocate scarce resources. Crisis Standards of Care: A Toolkit for Indicators and Triggers examines indicators and triggers that guide the implementation of crisis standards of care and provides a discussion toolkit to help stakeholders establish indicators and triggers for their own communities. Together, indicators and triggers help guide operational decision making about providing care during public health and medical emergencies and disasters. Indicators and triggers represent the information and actions taken at specific thresholds that guide incident recognition, response, and recovery. This report discusses indicators and triggers for both a slow onset scenario, such as pandemic influenza, and a no-notice scenario, such as an earthquake. Crisis Standards of Care features discussion toolkits customized to help various stakeholders develop indicators and triggers for their own organizations, agencies, and jurisdictions. The toolkit contains scenarios, key questions, and examples of indicators, triggers, and tactics to help promote discussion. In addition to common elements designed to facilitate integrated planning, the toolkit contains chapters specifically customized for emergency management, public health, emergency medical services, hospital and acute care, and out-of-hospital care.

Meant to aid State & local emergency managers in their efforts to develop & maintain a viable all-hazard emergency operations plan. This guide clarifies the preparedness, response, & short-term recovery planning elements that warrant inclusion in emergency operations plans. It offers the best judgment & recommendations on how to deal with the entire planning process -- from forming a planning team to writing the plan. Specific topics of discussion include: preliminary considerations, the planning process, emergency operations plan format, basic plan content, functional annex content, hazard-unique planning, & linking Federal & State operations.

Psychological Crisis Intervention: The SAFER-R Model is designed to provide the reader with a simple set of guidelines for the provision of psychological first aid (PFA). The model of psychological first aid (PFA) for individuals presented in this volume is the SAFER-R model developed by the authors. Arguably it is the most widely used tactical model of crisis intervention in the world with roughly 1 million individuals trained in its operational and derivative guidelines. This model of PFA is not a therapy model nor a substitute for therapy. Rather it is designed to help crisis interventionists stabile and mitigate acute crisis reactions in individuals, as opposed to groups. Guidelines for triage and referrals are also provided. Before plunging into the step-by-step guidelines, a brief history and terminological framework is provided. Lastly, recommendations for addressing specific psychological challenges (suicidal ideation, resistance to seeking professional psychological support, and depression) are provided.