© 2002 Oxford University Press
Finding Something to Do: The Disaster Continuity Care Model
From the School of Social and Behavioral Science at the University of Alabama-Birmingham (Valentine) and the School of Social Work at Florida State University (Smith).
Contact author: Pamela V. Valentine, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Government and Public Service, University of Alabama-Birmingham, Ullman Bldg., 238, Birmingham, AL 35294. E-mail: valentin{at}uab.edu
In this article, the authors outline a practice model that provides a disaster continuity of care (DCC) for mental health professionals. The authors argue that mental health professionals have been underutilized and that current practice models do not encompass the full spectrum of services that are needed by disaster victims. The alternative model builds on Omer and Alon's (1994) work in which four stages of disaster are hypothesized: planning, warning, impact, and aftermath. The authors propose that current practice models primarily are aimed at the impact and aftermath stages of disaster response. The authors review the use of Critical Incident Stress Management and Critical Incident Stress Debriefing as employed during disasters. The authors also critique the use of cognitive-behavioral therapies and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing and its effectiveness. The last set of trauma therapies reviewed are the "power therapies" and Traumatic Incident Reduction. The authors suggest that mental health professionals should be more active in the planning and warning stages where their knowledge of human development can prove invaluable. The authors end by suggesting how current models can be incorporated into the DCC model.
KEY WORDS: disaster, trauma, brief treatment, continuity, CISM, PTSD, TIR
