Disaster Mental Health Interventions

James Halpern, PhD, is Professor Emeritus and founding director of the Institute for Disaster Mental Health. He has received many federal, state and United Nations grants to develop curricula and deliver trainings throughout the US and abroad. Karla Vermeulen, PhD, is the Deputy Director of the Institute for Disaster Mental Health and an assistant professor of psychology at the State University of New York at New Paltz, where she oversees an advanced certificate in trauma and disaster mental health and develops trainings for disaster responders.

1. What Is Disaster Mental Health? 2. Describing Disasters 3. Typical Reactions 4. Early Interventions: Psychological First Aid 5. Early Interventions: Other Actions 6. Disaster Loss and Grief 7. Disaster’s Impact: Extreme Reactions 8. Children and Families 9. Vulnerable Populations 10. Cultural Competency 11. Practical Considerations and Self-Care for the Responder 12. Conclusions and New Directions