Post-Disaster Trauma and Recovery

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tara M. Powell ◽  
Shannondora Billiot ◽  
Leia Y. Saltzman
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Posttraumatic Growth ◽  
Disaster Response ◽  
Acute Stress ◽  
Traumatic Event ◽  
Community Level ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
The Social ◽  
Response And Recovery

Natural and man-made disasters have become much more frequent since the start of the 21st century. Disasters have numerous deleterious impacts. They disrupt individuals, families, and communities, causing displacement, food insecurity, injury, loss of livelihoods, conflict, and epidemics. The physical and mental health impact of a disaster can have extensive short- and long-term consequences. Immediately after a traumatic event, individuals may experience an array of reactions such as anxiety, depression, acute stress symptoms, shock, dissociation, allergies, injuries, or breathing problems. Given the economic and human impact of disasters, social workers are often quick to respond. Historically, the social work profession has provided services on the individual level, but initiatives have expanded to address community preparedness, response, and recovery. This article will explore the complexities of disaster response and recovery. Health and mental health impacts will be examined. Resilience and posttraumatic growth will then be discussed, exploring how individuals overcome adversity and trauma. Individual and community level preparedness mitigation, response, and recovery will explore how the field of social work has evolved as disasters have increased. Followed by an exploration of how social work has evolved to develop individual and community level preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery activities as disasters have increased. Finally, the article will examine special populations, including those with disabilities, children, indigenous people, older adults, and social service workers in all phases of disasters. As disasters grow more frequent it is vital for social work professionals to improve their efforts. We will conclude the chapter by examining the coordinated efforts the social work profession is involved in to help communities recover and even thrive after a traumatic event.

Bereavement

2012 ◽  
pp. 724-728 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beverley Raphael ◽  
Sally Wooding ◽  
Julie Dunsmore
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Protective Factors ◽  
Spiritual Needs ◽  
Human Suffering ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Making Meaning ◽  
Loved One ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
The Social ◽  
Neurobiological Substrates

Bereavement is the complex set reactions that occurs with the death of a loved one: the emotions of grief with yearning, angry protest, and sadness; the cognitive processes of understanding and making meaning of the finality and nature of death; and the social, cultural, spiritual, and religious contexts of adaptation. Grief may also result from other losses such as health, home, country, and safe worlds. There have been investigations into potential neurobiological substrates, without, as yet consensus about the explanatory model. This chapter covers the phenomenology of ‘normal grief’, neurobiology of bereavement, risk and protective factors influencing course and outcome, physical and mental health consequences of bereavement, and assessment and management. Counselling bereaved people requires hopeful, compassionate psychotherapeutic intervention which recognizes the human suffering involved, validates the person’s strengths, and respects their spiritual needs. Loss is a central issue for all of us, both our fears of it, and its reality. Counselling requires those involved to recognize their own sensitivities in this regard, and to assist the ‘journey’ of those affected in dealing with their loss. Most people grieve, remember with love those whom they have lost, and continue to love, and love anew.

Gay Men: Overview

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
James I. Martin
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Gay Men ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Cultural Influences ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Gay Identity ◽  
Identity Constructions ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Work Practitioners

This entry explains who gay men are, how gay identity constructions have evolved since their inception, and how they continue to evolve. It also describes the health and mental health problems that gay men may present to social work practitioners. In addition, it identifies several social policies that are relevant to gay men. The entry argues that a systemic perspective that takes into account the social, political, and cultural influences on gay men is necessary for understanding the problems that such men commonly experience.

Social Work in Funeral Homes, a Unique Chinese Practice?

2018 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 488-499
Author(s):  
Yunxian Huang ◽  
Weijia Tan ◽  
A. Ka Tat Tsang
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Funeral Home ◽  
The Social ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
Funeral Homes ◽  
Death Care ◽  
Further Development

Social workers were introduced to funeral homes in China amid the transition and expansion of both the funeral home industry and the social work profession and are proving to play a valuable, though under-researched role in serving not just clients but also communities and funeral home staff. Funeral home social work fills gaps in after-death care and mental health and is distinct from palliative, hospice, end-of-life, and bereavement social work. Based on the experiences of funeral homes that employ social workers, this article argues that this innovation may bring new ideas to bridge some of the service gaps in after-death care in China and globally. This article outlines the support that will be needed from funeral homes, social work service agencies, and educational and research institutes to facilitate further development of funeral home mental health and social services and to promote the professionalization of funeral home social workers in China.

Toward the Way Forward: The National Children's Disaster Mental Health Concept of Operations

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merritt Schreiber ◽  
Betty Pfefferbaum ◽  
Lisa Sayegh
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Disaster Response ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Response Strategy ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Disaster Mental Health ◽  
Incident Response ◽  
Health Concept ◽  
Response And Recovery ◽  
Concept Of Operations

ABSTRACTAlthough increasing evidence suggests that children are at particular risk from disasters and evidence-based practices have been developed to triage and treat them effectively, no strategy or concept of operations linking best practices for disaster response is currently in place. To our knowledge, this report describes the first effort to address this critical gap and outlines a triage-driven children's disaster mental health incident response strategy for seamless preparedness, response, and recovery elements that can be used now. The national children's disaster mental health concept of operations (NCDMH CONOPS) details the essential elements needed for an interoperable, coordinated response for the mental health needs of children by local communities, counties, regions, and states to better meet the needs of children affected by disasters and terrorism incidents. This CONOPS for children proposes the use of an evidence-based, rapid triage system to provide a common data metric to incident response and recovery action and to rationally align limited resources to those at greater need in a population-based approach.(Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2012;6:174–181)

Kenworthy, Marion Edwena

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca L. Sperling
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Child Psychiatry ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
The Social

Marion Edwena Kenworthy (1891–1980) was a psychiatrist who introduced psychoanalytic concepts into the social work curriculum. She was influential in the professionalization of social work and specialized in child psychiatry and mental health services for the armed forces.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Behavioral Health Disaster Response App

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 516-518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie Seligman ◽  
Stephanie S. Felder ◽  
Maryann E. Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Substance Abuse ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Behavioral Health ◽  
Disaster Response ◽  
Traumatic Event ◽  
Health Resources ◽  
Health Services Administration ◽  
Disaster Survivors

AbstractThe Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in the Department of Health and Human Services offers extensive disaster behavior health resources to assist disaster survivors in preparing for, responding to, and recovering from natural and manmade disasters. One of SAMHSA’s most innovative resources is the SAMHSA Behavioral Health Disaster Response App (SAMHSA Disaster App). The SAMHSA Disaster App prepares behavioral health responders for any type of traumatic event by allowing them to access disaster-related materials and other key resources right on their phone, at the touch of a button. The SAMHSA Disaster App is available on iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry devices. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2015;9:516–518)

scholarly journals Perceptions of the social worker role in adult community mental health teams in England

2020 ◽  
pp. 147332502092408
Author(s):  
Michele Abendstern ◽  
Jane Hughes ◽  
Mark Wilberforce ◽  
Karen Davies ◽  
Rosa Pitts ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Community Mental Health ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Model ◽  
Service Users ◽  
Community Mental Health Team ◽  
Mental Health Team ◽  
Health Team ◽  
The Social

There is a growing recognition of the importance of the social work contribution within community mental health services. However, although many texts describe what the mental health social work contribution should be, little empirical evidence exists about their role in practice and the difference it might make to service users. This qualitative study sought to articulate this contribution through the voices of social workers and their multidisciplinary colleagues via focus group discussions across four English Mental Health Trusts. These considered the impact of the social worker on the service user. Thematic analysis resulted in the identification of three over-arching themes: social workers own perceptions of their contribution situated within the social model; the high value their colleagues placed on social work support and leadership in a range of situations and the concerns for service users if social workers were withdrawn from teams. Key findings were that social workers are the only professional group to lead on the social model; that this model enhances the whole teams’ practice and is required if service users are to be offered support that promotes long-term recovery and that without social workers, the community mental health team offer would be more transactional, less timely, with the potential for the loss of the service users’ voice. If social work is to make a full contribution to community mental health team practice, it must be clearly understood and provided with the support to enable social workers to operate to their full potential.

Special Issue

2018 ◽  
pp. 184-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Bender ◽  
Karlie Hill
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Sexually Transmitted Infections ◽  
Social Stigma ◽  
Psychological Consequences ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Sexually Transmitted ◽  
Attitudes And Behaviors ◽  
The Social ◽  
Prejudicial Attitudes

Misconceptions regarding the cause(s) of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) has led to a number of prejudices against those with such diagnoses. A fear of being the object of prejudicial attitudes and behaviors leaves many individuals concerned about the social stigma of a STI diagnosis. This, in turn, may leave people unwilling to get tested or hesitant to disclose their diagnosis to others, which may fuel the spread of such infections. In addition to the numerous medical concerns associated with STIs, the psychological consequences of STIs are notable as well. Understanding the stigma related to STIs is an important step towards improving the mental health of people with such diagnoses. This chapter provides the reader with an overview of STI diagnoses, and an explanation of their physical and mental health consequences. The chapter continues by examining the three types of stigma as well as their components. Finally, the chapter offers a number of suggestions regarding how to combat STI stigma, which may be extrapolated to combat other forms of stigma affecting mental health.

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