First Responder Psychological Recovery Following a Mass Casualty Event

Author(s):  
Sara Garrido ◽  
John Nicoletti

Mass Casualty Events (MCE) have an extraordinary impact on an entire community. The impact on victims' families, survivors, and community members is often the subject of significant attention; however, rarely does the impact on first responders (law enforcement officers, firefighters, dispatchers, crime scene investigators/photographers, etc.) garner the same coverage. Additionally, agencies can quickly become overwhelmed by the magnitude of the response causing them to overlook the psychological impact of these incidents on their personnel. Serving as specialists in police and public safety psychology, crisis intervention, and trauma recovery, the authors reflect on lessons learned from their response to multiple MCEs, including the 1999 Columbine High School shooting and the 2012 Aurora Century 16 Theater shooting, and offer recommendations to agencies regarding crisis response and trauma recovery.

2016 ◽  
pp. 653-667
Author(s):  
Sara Garrido ◽  
John Nicoletti

Mass Casualty Events (MCE) have an extraordinary impact on an entire community. The impact on victims' families, survivors, and community members is often the subject of significant attention; however, rarely does the impact on first responders (law enforcement officers, firefighters, dispatchers, crime scene investigators/photographers, etc.) garner the same coverage. Additionally, agencies can quickly become overwhelmed by the magnitude of the response causing them to overlook the psychological impact of these incidents on their personnel. Serving as specialists in police and public safety psychology, crisis intervention, and trauma recovery, the authors reflect on lessons learned from their response to multiple MCEs, including the 1999 Columbine High School shooting and the 2012 Aurora Century 16 Theater shooting, and offer recommendations to agencies regarding crisis response and trauma recovery.


Author(s):  
Ernest Dube ◽  
Gayan Wedawatta ◽  
Kanchana Ginige

AbstractThis study evaluated the build-back-better considerations in post-disaster recovery, following the devastation of Chipinge and Chimanimani communities by Cyclone Idai-induced floods in 2019. Conducted in 2020, the study assessed the impact of Cyclone Idai-induced floods on communities in Chipinge and Chimanimani Districts of Zimbabwe; evaluated the build-back-better considerations; and analyzed the lessons learned. Based on a qualitative approach and case study design, the study depended on focus group discussions, interviews, and researcher observations to gather data from 85 participants. The findings indicate that Cyclone Idai-induced floods seriously impacted human lives, infrastructure, and livelihoods of communities that had been living with flood risk and vulnerability. Build-back-better considerations were absent in much of the post-disaster recovery effort to address the cyclone disaster impact. There are important early lessons for both practitioners and community members to learn from the Cyclone Idai event. These lessons still can inform policy and disaster risk reduction practice in the medium and long term. Build-back-better should be a mandatory objective in the recovery from any disaster impact. Continuous training is also recommended to improve the disaster knowledge of stakeholders and increase local ability to cope with future disaster events.


2021 ◽  
pp. bmjmilitary-2020-001691
Author(s):  
Katherine France ◽  
C Handford

IntroductionThe positive impact of advances in military medicine and the influence these have had on civilian medical practice have been well documented throughout history: this review will be looking specifically between 2009 and 2020.AimsReview of innovations that have been implemented or have influenced civilian practice within the areas of trauma, disease outbreak management and civilian systems between 2009 and 2020. This review will also aim to explore the impact that working with or within the military can have on individuals within civilian healthcare systems and the future challenges we face to maintain skills.ResultsUsing a narrative approach to this review, we found that there have been numerous changes to trauma management within the UK, based on military practice and research during conflict, which have improved survival outcomes. In addition, the use of niche military skills as part of a coordinated response, during both internal and international disease outbreaks, are thought to have supported civilian systems enabling an efficient and prolonged response. Furthermore, adaptation of military concepts and their application to the NHS through consultant-led prehospital teams, centralisation of specialties in the form of major trauma centres and the introduction of guidelines to manage 'major incidents and mass casualty events' in 2018 have improved patient outcomes.ConclusionFrom 2009 to 2020, lessons learnt from the British and other nations’ militaries have been integrated into UK practice and have likely contributed to improved outcomes in the management of major incidents both nationally and internationally.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. e000210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel M Russo ◽  
Joseph M Galante ◽  
John B Holcomb ◽  
Warren Dorlac ◽  
Jason Brocker ◽  
...  

Care during mass casualty events (MCE) has improved during the last 15 years. Military and civilian collaboration has led to partnerships which augment the response to MCE. Much has been written about strategies to deliver care during an MCE, but there is little about how to transition back to normal operations after an event. A panel discussion entitled The Day(s) After: Lessons Learned from Trauma Team Management in the Aftermath of an Unexpected Mass Casualty Event at the 76th Annual American Association for the Surgery of Trauma meeting on September 13, 2017 brought together a cadre of military and civilian surgeons with experience in MCEs. The events described were the First Battle of Mogadishu (1993), the Second Battle of Fallujah (2004), the Bagram Detention Center Rocket Attack (2014), the Boston Marathon Bombing (2013), the Asiana Flight 214 Plane Crash (2013), the Baltimore Riots (2015), and the Orlando Pulse Night Club Shooting (2016). This article focuses on the lessons learned from military and civilian surgeons in the days after MCEs.


2003 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 92-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Carli ◽  
Caroline Telion ◽  
David Baker

AbstractFrance has experienced two waves of major terrorist bombings since 1980. In the first wave (1985–1986), eight bombings occurred in Paris, killing 13 and injuring 281. In the second wave (1995–1996), six bombings occurred in Paris and Lyon, killing 10 and injuring 262. Based on lessons learned during these events, France has developed and improved a sophisticated national system for prehospital emergency response to conventional terrorist attacks based on its national emergency medical services (EMS) system, Service d' Aide Medicale Urgente (SAMU). According to the national plan for the emergency medical response to mass-casualty events (White Plan), the major phases of EMS response are: (1) alert; (2) search and rescue; (3) triage of victims and provision of critical care to first priority victims; (4) regulated dispatch of victims to hospitals; and (5) psychological assistance.Following the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack, a national plan for the emergency response to chemical and biological events (PIRATOX) was implemented. In 2002, the Ministries of Health and the Interior collaborated to produce a comprehensive national plan (BIOTOX) for the emergency response to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear events. Key aspects of BIOTOX are the prehospital provision of specialized advance life support for toxic injuries and the protection of responders in contaminated environments. BIOTOX was successfully used during the 2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in France.


2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peggy C Holzweiss ◽  
Daniel W Walker ◽  
Ruth Chisum ◽  
Thomas Sosebee

While institutions have crisis management plans, they are often focused on face-to-face students and the physical campus.  In this case study, researchers investigated the crisis response for online students at one institution after Hurricane Harvey hit the Houston, Texas, area in the fall of 2017. While face-to-face students were not severely impacted, more than a thousand online students were in the impact zone and in danger of dropping out. With financial resources and student retention at risk, campus leaders approved a strategy to delay online courses for several weeks.  This study examines the experiences of the front-line staff who implemented the plan.  Findings suggest that institutions need a proactive crisis plan for online students that includes understanding where this population resides, how different campus units can provide support in a crisis, who should lead the crisis response, and what kind of care can be offered to the front-line responders during the crisis period.


2004 ◽  
Vol 19 (04) ◽  
pp. 370-371 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian M. Sandell ◽  
I.K. Maconochie

Waismanet al1have once more highlighted the very real challenge of triaging children in mass-casualty events (MCE) in the pre-hospital setting. Difficulties encountered measuring vital signs and different patterns of injury, reflecting significant anatomical and physiological differences, necessitates a modified approach when applying traditional “adult” triage methods to paediatric trauma victims. When using physiological parameters to triage children, their faster respiratory rates and heart rates frequently result in younger children being triaged to a higher category than their injuries demand. These differences become less apparent during adolescence, as the young person matures into adulthood.


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