Articles in this section:
NCTSN Debuts Psychological First Aid Protocol
Resources Help Parents and Professionals Support Children

NCTSN Debuts
Psychological First Aid Protocol
New Tool Will Help Children Displaced by Hurricane Katrina, Other Disasters

The NCTSN has released a new treatment protocol for providing Psychological First Aid to children and families after disasters. The protocol, years in the making, is based on sound research as well as practice in the field. It can be used to help children and families after traumatic events, including natural disasters, catastrophic school violence, and terrorism. Mental health professionals responding to Hurricane Katrina used it to conduct triage as they assessed and provided assistance to displaced children, stabilized traumatized children, and began to patch psychological wounds.

“Psychological First Aid is based on the same principles as physical first aid,” said Alan Steinberg, PhD, NCTSN associate director, who had the lead on development of the protocols. “In the immediate aftermath of traumatic events, Psychological First Aid can reduce initial distress and foster healthy adaptive functioning.

NCTSN shared the materials with the American Red Cross, FEMA, and many professional mental health organizations, and they have been put to use by the numerous NCTSN sites working with children and families displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

For example:

• NCTSN members in Jackson, MS, and Houston, TX, implemented the protocol immediately with many of the thousands of relocated families.
• Other NCTSN member sites where displaced families were settled, including Washington, DC, Salt Lake City, Boston, and Denver, will use the protocol.
• Field trainings in Psychological First Aid were held for mental health disaster response teams in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas
• The materials are now available through www.NCTSN.org.

“What we learned responding to the terrorists’ attacks of September 11, 2001, and a range of natural disasters nationally and internationally, influenced the development of this protocol,” Steinberg said. “This methodology will be important to the nation’s ability to respond to future events."

The Psychological First Aid materials are available here, and a limited number of hard copies are available for free by e-mailing the National Resource Center at nationalresourcecenter@duke.edu. Additional medical provider materials are available at www.NCTSN.org.