Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-8bhkd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T07:25:42.882Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

When Disaster Strikes: Responding to the Needs of Children

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2012

Robin H. Gurwitch ,
Michelle Kees ,
Steven M. Becker ,
Merritt Schreiber ,
Betty Pfefferbaum  and
Dickson Diamond
Robin H. Gurwitch*
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center for Terrorism and Disaster Branch, and National Center for Child Traumatic Stress, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA
Michelle Kees
Affiliation:
Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan USA
Steven M. Becker
Affiliation:
School of Public Health, and Center for Emergency Care and Disaster Preparedness, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama USA
Merritt Schreiber
Affiliation:
Neuropsychiatric Institute and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences University of California-Los Angeles, Terrorism and Disaster Branch, National Center for Child Traumatic Stress, Los Angeles, California USA
Betty Pfefferbaum
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Terrorism and Disaster Branch, and National Center for Child Traumatic Stress, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma USA
Dickson Diamond
Affiliation:
Bioterrorism Preparedness Program, Los Angeles Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, California USA
*
Department of Pediatrics University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center 1100 NE 13th Street Oklahoma City, OK 73117 USA E-mail: robin-gurwitch@ouhsc.edu
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

When a disaster strikes, parents are quick to seek out the medical advice and reassurance of their primary care physician, pediatrician, or in the case of an emergency, an emergency department physician. As physicians often are the first line of responders following a disaster, it is important that they have a thorough understanding of children's responses to trauma and disaster and of recommended practices for screening and intervention. In collaboration with mental health professionals, the needs of children and families can be addressed. Policy-makers and systems of care hold great responsibility for resource allocation, and also are well-placed to understand the impact of trauma and disaster on children and children's unique needs in such situations.

Keywords

bioterrorismchildrendisasterinterventionsmental healthpolicypost-traumatic stress reactionsterrorism
Type
Special Reports
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 19 , Special Issue 1: Psychosocial Themes , March 2004 , pp. 21 - 28
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 2004

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1.UCLA School of Medicine: Emergency Medicine Interest Group [Online]. Available at http://www.medstudent.ucla.edu/emig/history.htm. Accessed 7 July 2003.Google Scholar
2.American Academy of Pediatrics: How pediatricians can respond to the psychosocial implications of disasters (RE9813). Pediatrics 1999;103:521–523.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
3.America's Health Together: Mental health and primary care in a time of terrorism. [Online]. Available at http://www.healthtogether.org/healthtogether/programs/mentalHealth.html. Accessed 14 March 2003. American Red Cross. 1998. Disaster Mental Health Services. ARC 3043: American National Red Cross.Google Scholar
4.Blaschke, GS, Palfrey, JS, Lynch, J: Advocating for children during uncertain times. Pediatr Ann 2003;32:271–274.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
5.Gurwitch, RH, Sitterle, KS, Young, BH, Pfefferbaum, B: Helping children cope with disasters and terrorism. In: LaGreca, A, Silverman, W, Vernberg, E, Roberts, M (eds), The Aftermath of Terrorism. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association Press, 2002, pp 327–357.Google Scholar
6.Norris, FH, Friedman, MJ, Watson, PJ: 60,000 disaster victims speak: Part II: Summary and implications of the disaster mental health research. Psychiatry 2002;65:240–260.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
7.Gurwitch, RH, Pfefferbaum, B, Leftwich, MJT: The impact of terrorism on children: Considerations for a new era. Journal of Trauma Practice 2002;1;101–124.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
8.Pfefferbaum, B, Nixon, SJ, Krug, RS, et al. :Clinical needs assessment of middle and high school students following the Oklahoma City bombing. Am J Psychiatry 1999;156:1069–1074.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
9.Schlenger, WE, Caddell, JM, Ebert, L, et al. :Psychological reactions to terrorist attacks: Findings from the national study of Americans' reactions to September 11. JAMA 2002;288:581–588.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10.Perry, B: Childhood trauma and neurological and physical development. Presented at the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services training Conference, Oklahoma City, OK, 1997.Google Scholar
11.Wong, M: School Crisis Recovery. In: Wong, M, Kelly, J, Stephens, RD, Jane's School Safety Handbook. Alexandria, VA: Jane's Information Group, 2001, pp 111.Google Scholar
12.American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: Practice parameters for the assessment and treatment of children with post-traumatic stress disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 1998;37:4S–26S.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
13.Ruggiero, KJ, Morris, TL, Scotti, JR: Treatment for children with post-traumatic stress disorder: Current status and future directions. Clinical Psychology-Science and Practice 2001;8:210–227.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
14.Perrin, S, Smith, P, Yule, W: Practitioner review: The assessment and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2000;41:277–289.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
15.Ribbe, DP, Lipovsky, JA, Freedy, JR: Post-traumatic stress disorder. In: Eisen, AR, Kearney, CA, Schaefer, CE (eds), Clinical Handbook of Anxiety Disorders in Children and Adolescents. Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson, Inc, 1995, pp 317–356.Google Scholar
16.Hoven, CW: US Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee Hearing Testimony Regarding Unmet Mental Health Needs of New York City Public School Children as a Result of the September 11th Attacks on the World Trade Center. [Online]. Available at http://chaos.cpmc.columbia.edu/sph/Displayimage.asp?Event_NO=309. Accessed 1 June 2003.Google Scholar
17.Schuster, MA, Stein, BD, Jaycox, L, et al. :A national survey of stress reactions after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. N Engl J Med 2001;345:1507–1512.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
18.Elbedour, S, Baker, A, Shalhoub-Kevorkian, N, et al. : Psychological responses in family members after the Hebron massacre. Depress Anxiety 1999;9:27–31.3.0.CO;2-W>CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
19.Trappler, B, Friedman, S: Post-traumatic stress disorder in survivors of the Brooklyn Bridge shooting. Am J Psychiatry 1996;153:705–707.Google ScholarPubMed
20.Green, B, Grace, M, Vary, M, et al. : Children of disaster in the second decade: A 17-year follow-up of Buffalo Creek survivors. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 1994;33:77–79.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
21.IOM (Institute of Medicine): Preparing for the Psychological Consequences of Terrorism: A Public Health Strategy. Washington DC: The National Academies Press, 2003.Google Scholar
22.Pynoos, RS, Steinberg, AM, Schreiber, MD, Brymer, MJ: Children and Families: A New Framework for Preparedness and Response to Danger, Terrorism, and Trauma. Los Angeles: UCLA/Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, 2003.Google Scholar
23.Pfefferbaum, B, Nixon, SJ, Krug, RS, et al. : Clinical needs assessment of middle and high school students following the Oklahoma City bombing. Am J Psychiatry 1999;156:1069–1074.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
24.Gurwitch, RH, Leftwich, MJT, Pfefferbaum, B, Pynoos, R: The roles of age and gender on children's reactions to trauma and disaster: The Oklahoma City bombing. Presented at the Third World Conference for the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, Melbourne, Australia, March 2000.Google Scholar
25.Pfefferbaum, B, Nixon, SJ, Tivis, RD, et al. : Television exposure in children after a terrorist incident. Psychiatry 2001;64:202–211.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
26.Pfefferbaum, B, Seale, TW, McDonald, NB, et al. : Post-traumatic stress two years after the Oklahoma City bombing in youths geographically distant from the explosion. Psychiatry 2000;63:358–370.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
27.Silver, RC, Holman, EA, McIntosh, DN, et al. :Nationwide longitudinal study of psychological responses to September 11. JAMA 2002;288:1235–1244.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
28.LaGreca, A, Silverman, W, Wasserstein, S: Children's predisaster functioning as a predictor of post-traumatic stress following Hurricane Andrew. J Consult Clin Psychol 1998;66:883–892.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
29.Cohen, JA, Berliner, L, March, JS: Treatment of children and adolescents. In: Foa, EB, Keane, TM (eds), Effective Treatments for PTSD: Practice Guidelines from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies. New York: The Guilford Press, 2000, pp 106–138.Google Scholar
30.Green, B, Korol, M, Grace, M, et al. : Children and disaster: Age, gender, and parental effects on PTSD symptoms. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 1991;30:945–951.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
31.Shaw, J, Applegate, B, Tanner, S, et al. : Psychological effects of Hurricane Andrew on an elementary school population. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 1995;34:1185–1192.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
32.Gurwitch, RH, Kees, M, Becker, SM: In the face of tragedy: Placing children's reactions to trauma in a new context. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice 2003;9:286–295.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
33.American Psychiatric Association: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, (4th ed) (DSM-IV). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association, 1994.Google Scholar
34.Gaensbauer, TJ: Trauma in the preverbal period: Symptoms, memories, and developmental impact. The Psychoanalytic Study of the Child. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1995, pp 123–149.Google Scholar
35.Scheeringa, MS, Zeanah, CH, Drell, MJ, Larrieu, JA: Two approaches to diagnosing post-traumatic stress disorder in infancy and early childhood. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 1995;34:191–200.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
36.Calhoun, LG, Tedeschi, RG: Post-traumatic growth: The positive lessons of loss. In: Neimeyer, RA (ed), Meaning Reconstruction and the Experience of Loss. American Psychological Association, 2001, pp 157–172.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
37.Mitchell, JT: When disaster strikes: The critical incident stress debriefing process. J Emerg Med Serv 1983;8:36–39.Google ScholarPubMed
38.National Institute of Mental Health: Mental Health and Mass Violence: Evidence-Based Early Psychological Intervention for Victims/Survivors of Mass Violence. A Workshop to Reach Consensus on Best Practices. NIH Publication No. 02–5138, Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 2002.Google Scholar
39.Foa, EB, Hearst-Ikeda, D, Perry, KJ: Evaluation of a brief cognitive-behavioral program for the prevention of chronic PTSD in recent assault victims. J Consult Clin Psychol 1995;63:948–955.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
40.Schreiber, MD: Children's Emergencies in Weapons of Mass Destruction and Terrorism: Disaster System of Care, Rapid Triage, and Consequence Management. Keynote address presented at the 16th Annual California Injury Prevention Conference, Sacramento, California, 2002.Google Scholar
41.Schreiber, MD: Children's Emergencies in Disasters: Strategies for Consequence Management and Triage in Mass Casualty Events. Paper Presented at the Terrorism, Bioterrorism and Mental Health Conference, Davis, California: University of California-Davis, 2002.Google Scholar
42.LaGreca, AM, Vernberg, EM, Silverman, WK, Vogel, AL, Prinstein, MJ: Helping Children Prepare for and Cope with Disasters: A Manual for Professionals Working with Elementary School Children. Coral Gables, Florida: University of Miami, 1993.Google Scholar
43.American Red Cross: Facing Fear: Helping Young People Deal with Terrorism and Tragic Events. Falls Church, Virginia: The American National Red Cross, 2001.Google Scholar
44.US Department of Education. Available at www.ed.gov. Accessed 18 June 2004.Google Scholar
45.Erikson, K: A New Species of Trouble: The Human Experience of Modern Disasters. New York: WW Norton, 1994.Google Scholar
46.Becker, SM: Psychosocial Effects of Radiation Accidents. In: Gusev, I, Guskova, A, Guskova, FA, Mettler, F (eds), Medical Management of Radiation Accidents. 2d ed.Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2001, pp 519–525.Google Scholar
47.Benedek, DM, Holloway, HC, Becker, SM: Emergency Mental Health Management of Bioterrorism Events. In: Darling, R (ed), Emergency Medical Clinics of North America 2002;20:393–407.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
48.Holloway, HC, Norwood, AE, Fullerton, CS, et al. : The threat of biological weapons: Prophylaxis and mitigation of psychological and social consequences. JAMA 1997;278:425–427.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
49.Breton, J, Valla, J, Lambert, J: Industrial disaster and mental health of children and their parents. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 1993;32:438–445.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
50.Cardwell, J: Students' deaths frighten community. The Akron Beacon Journal. 29 May 2001.Google Scholar
51.Higgins, J: Thousands wait in rain for antibiotics. The Akron Beacon Journal. 3 June 2001.Google Scholar
52.Diamond, D, Schreiber, M: Models for the Management of Terrorist Events with Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Agents. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the National Disaster Medical System-DMAT CA-1. Santa Ana, CA:Western Medical Center, September 2000.Google Scholar
53.Havenaar, JM, Rumyantzeva, GM, van den Brink, W, et al. :Long-term mental health effects of the Chernobyl disaster: An epidemiologic survey of two former Soviet regions. Am J Psychiatry 1997;154:1605–1607.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
54.Diamond, D, Schreiber, M, Gurwitch, RH: Guidelines for mental health professionals: weapons of mass destruction agent-specific early interventions, child considerations. Unpublished manuscript, 2003.Google Scholar
55.Committee on Environmental Health and Committee on Infectious Diseases, American Academy of Pediatrics: Chemical-biological terrorism and its impacts on children: A subject review. Pediatrics 2000;3:662–670.Google Scholar
56.Yassi, A, Kjellstrom, T, de Kok, T, Guidotti, TL: Basic Environmental Health. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
57.Guskova, AK, Gusev, I: Medical Aspects of the Accident at Chernobyl. In: Gusev, I, Guskova, FA, Mettler, F (eds), Medical Management of Radiation Accidents, 2d ed.Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2001, pp 195–210.Google Scholar
58.Rotenberg, JS, Burklow, TR, Selanikio, JS: Weapons of mass destruction: The decontamination of children. Pediatr Ann 2003;32:260–267CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
59.Becker, SM: Psychosocial assistance after environmental accidents: A policy perspective. Environmental Health Perspectives (National Institutes of Health) 1997;105:557–563.Google ScholarPubMed
60.Becker, SM: Responding to the Psychosocial Effects of Toxic Disaster: Policy Initiatives, Constraints and Challenges. In: Havenaar, J, Cwikel, J, Bromet, E (eds), Toxic Turmoil.New York:Plenum Press, 2002, pp 199–216.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
61.Bebeshko, S, Korol, N: Presentation given at the International Conference on Radiation and Health, World Health Organization, International Atomic Energy Agency, Soroka Medical Center, and Ben-Gurion University, BerSheva, Israel, 3–7 November 1996.Google Scholar
62.Collins, DL, deCarvalho, AB: Chronic stress from the Goiania Cs-137 radiation accident. Behav Med 1993;18:149–157.CrossRefGoogle Scholar