Mental health workers: The overlooked victims of 9/11

March 27, 2012 in Psychology & Psychiatry

We've all heard about the stress experienced by victims of 9/11, but have we ever paused to think about the effect of those terrorist attacks on mental health clinicians who provided care to the victims? A new study by Mary Pulido, Ph.D., from the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children in the US, provides a sobering account of what it was like for these professionals and reports on the lack of support they received. Her exploratory study, published in Springer's Clinical Social Work Journal, highlights the critical need to develop training and expand support systems for clinicians in order to combat secondary traumatic stress.

People may suffer symptoms of through secondary exposure to the trauma histories of others. Disaster may be at particularly of this co-called secondary traumatic stress. Not only are they exposed to the and psychic pains experienced by their clients, they carry the professional burden of being expected to remain open and available to their clients on an emotional level. In the case of 9/11, these clinicians were also exposed to the same disaster as those they were helping.

To gain a better understanding of the effects of indirect exposure to terrorism, Pulido conducted in-depth, one-on-one interviews with 26 clinicians (a combination of therapists, , and ) who had carried out 9/11-related therapeutic work with clients. She asked them about the extent of their work with clients impacted by 9/11; how working with these clients and their issues had affected them; and what types of supports were available to them through their job for handling 9/11-related stress.

The clinicians' experiences differed based on the type of client: some dealt directly with family members who had lost loved ones, others dealt with people who fled the burning towers, and some worked with individuals considered indirectly exposed, but who were still fearful and symptomatic. Thirty months after the attacks, secondary traumatic stress levels were high among clinicians who provided care to victims of 9/11. The clinicians being interviewed were themselves surprised at the intensity of these stress levels. In addition, they described availability of supervision and agency support as 'weak', but said peer support was helpful.

Dr. Pulido concludes: "For many professionals, these interviews, conducted several years after the attacks, served as the first time they had discussed their 9/11 work and the stresses they encountered. This factor alone speaks volumes for the lack of support that they received while providing such intense clinical support for their clients. These findings need to be integrated into training and practice."

More information: Pulido ML (2012). The ripple effect: lessons learned about secondary traumatic stress among clinicians responding to the September 11th terrorist attacks. Clinical Social Work Journal. DOI 10.1007/s10615-012-0384-3

Provided by Springer

not rated yet  

Rank not rated yet
Relevant PhysicsForums posts

More news stories

Genetic predictors of postpartum depression uncovered

Johns Hopkins researchers say they have discovered specific chemical alterations in two genes that, when present during pregnancy, reliably predict whether a woman will develop postpartum depression.

Psychology & Psychiatry created 6 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Mediterranean diet seems to boost ageing brain power

A Mediterranean diet with added extra virgin olive oil or mixed nuts seems to improve the brain power of older people better than advising them to follow a low-fat diet, indicates research published online in the Journal of ...

Psychology & Psychiatry created 15 hours ago | popularity 2 / 5 (1) | comments 2

The incidence of eating disorders is increasing in the UK

More people are being diagnosed with eating disorders every year and the most common type is not either of the two most well known—bulimia or anorexia—but eating disorders not otherwise specified (eating disorders that ...

Psychology & Psychiatry created 15 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Practice makes perfect? Not so much

Turns out, that old "practice makes perfect" adage may be overblown. New research led by Michigan State University's Zach Hambrick finds that a copious amount of practice is not enough to explain why people ...

Psychology & Psychiatry created 16 hours ago | popularity 3.5 / 5 (11) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Study shows how bilinguals switch between languages

(Medical Xpress)—Individuals who learn two languages at an early age seem to switch back and forth between separate "sound systems" for each language, according to new research conducted at the University of Arizona.

Psychology & Psychiatry created 18 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0 | with audio podcast


Study shows where scene context happens in our brain

In a remote fishing community in Venezuela, a lone fisherman sits on a cliff overlooking the southern Caribbean Sea. This man –– the lookout –– is responsible for directing his comrades on the water, ...

Monoclonal antibody appears effective and safe in asthma Phase IIa trial

A novel approach to obstructing the runaway inflammatory response implicated in some types of asthma has shown promise in a Phase IIa clinical trial, according to U. S. researchers.

New rice contamination reported in China

Authorities are investigating rice mills in southern China following tests that found almost half of the staple grain in one of the country's largest cities was contaminated with a toxic metal.

Exercise levels may predict hospitalizations in COPD population

Clinical measurement of physical activity appears to be an independent predictor of whether or not patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) will end up being hospitalized, according to a new study conducted ...

Delayed transfer to the ICU increases risk of death in hospital patients

Delayed transfer to the intensive care unit (ICU) in hospitalized patients significantly increases the risk of dying in the hospital, according to a new study from researchers in Chicago.

Treatment with A1-PI slows the progression of emphysema in Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency

Treatment with an Alpha-1 proteinase inhibitor (A1-PI), a naturally occurring protein that protects lung tissue from breakdown and protects the lung's elasticity, is effective in slowing the progression of emphysema in patients ...