title: Volunteers and professional rescue workers: traumatization and adaptation after an avalanche disaster.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the degree of traumatization and adaptation in professional and volunteer rescue workers after two snow avalanches.
  
  
  METHODS
  Questionnaires including demographic questions, the Social Readjustment Rating Scale, the Rescue Workers Questionnaire, the General Health Questionnaire, the Impact of Event Scale, and the Coping Styles Questionnaire were answered by rescue workers (n = 168).
  
  
  RESULTS
  In several areas, professional rescuers had stronger fears than volunteers, all the same, volunteers were significantly more anxious and met criteria for PTSD caseness more often than professionals.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings suggest that voluntary rescue workers suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms more often than professionals following demanding rescue missions.
authors.affiliation: State Diagnostic and Counselling Centre, Kópavogur, Iceland.
authors.forename: Helga Arnfridur
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Haraldsdóttir
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Services, Landspitali, The National Hospital of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland.
authors.forename: Drifa
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gudmundsdóttir
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
authors.forename: Eugenia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Romano
authors.affiliation: Centre of Public Health Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland.
authors.forename: Edda Björk
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Þórðardóttir
authors.affiliation: Centre of Public Health Services, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland.
authors.forename: Berglind
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Guðmundsdóttir
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.; Department of Psychology, University of Ulster, Derry, Northern Ireland.
authors.forename: Ask
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Elklit
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D055875:Avalanches; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018635:Rescue Work; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014838:Volunteers