Disaster care: psychological considerations.
Disasters are tragic events that disrupt the normal functioning ofa community and overwhelm personal and community resources. The people who experience or simply witness traumatic events can be affected emotionally and develop a range of physical and emotional responses, which in turn can produce psychological, social, and physiological dysfunction. The challenge for health care providers is to recognize the range of emotions and to be able to identify when professional help is indicated. This article provides an overview of the human stress response and describes sources of stress that follow disasters, acute stress disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and interventions and resources used to care for victims after disasters.
Mitchell
Ann M
AM
University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA. ammi@pitt.edu
Sakraida
Teresa J
TJ
Zalice
Kirstyn K
KK
D003419:Crisis Intervention; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004181:Directories as Topic; D004190:Disasters; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D009730:Nursing Assessment; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000451:nursing / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D040701:Stress Disorders, Traumatic, Acute / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000451:nursing / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy