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Mental Health Professionals:
Information for Radiation Emergencies

Federal Guidance - HHS
Federal Guidance - HHS Collaborations
Other Federal Guidance
International Guidance
Issues for Health Care Providers
Issues for Affected Populations
Other Resources

Federal Guidance - HHS

Behavioral Health (HHS)
Guidance from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (HHS/SAMHSA)
Coping with a Disaster or Traumatic Event: Trauma and Disaster Mental Health Resources (HHS/CDC)
Traumatic Incident Stress: Information For Emergency Response Workers (HHS/CDC, October 2001)

Federal Guidance - HHS Collaborations

Integration of Mental and Behavioral Health in the Federal Disaster Preparedness, Response, and Recovery: Assessment and Recommendations, A Report of the Disaster Mental Health Subcommittee of the National Biodefense Science Board, Sept 2010 (PDF - 143 KB)
National Child Traumatic Stress Network (HHS/University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)/Duke University)
- Psychological First Aid: Field Operations Guide (National Child Traumatic Stress Network and the National Center for PTSD, 2nd edition, 2008)

Other Federal Guidance

Psychological First Aid in Radiation Disasters (CDC/ online course) (HHS/CDC)
National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (Department of Veterans Affairs)
- For the public
- For Professionals
Psychological and Behavioral Issues Healthcare Providers Need to Know when Treating Patients Following a Radiation Event (PDF - 107 KB) (Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress, Department of Psychiatry, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences)
Psychological and Behavioral Issues Healthcare Providers Need to Know when Managing a Chemical, Biological, Radiological or Nuclear (CBRN) Event (PDF - 197 KB) (Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress, Department of Psychiatry, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences)

International Guidance

Emergency Preparedness and Response: Generic Procedures for Medical Response during a Nuclear or Radiological Emergency (PDF - 2,225 KB) (Section E: Psychological Support, pp. 91 - 99, IAEA, April 2005)

Issues for Health Care Providers

Psychological First Aid
- Building Workforce Resilience through the Practice of Psychological First Aid - A Course for Supervisors and Leaders (NACCHO)
- Psychologial First Aid (PFA) Tutorial (Univ. of Minnesota School of Public Health mobile app and web site)
- Providing Psychological First Aid (PFA) (PDF - 40 KB) (New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene)
- Psychological First Aid (PDF - 2.9 MB) (National Child Traumatic Stress Network, National Center for PTSD, 2006)
- Psychological First Aid (PFA) (Minnesota Department of Health)
- Listen, Protect, Connect Program
  - Research results
    - Ramirez M, Harland K, Frederick M, Shepherd R, Wong M, Cavanaugh JE. Listen protect connect for traumatized schoolchildren: a pilot study of psychological first aid. BMC Psychology 2013;1:26.
    - Chandra A, Kim J, Pieters HC, Tang J, McCreary M, Schreiber M, Wells K. Implementing psychological first-aid training for medical reserve corps volunteers. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2014 Feb;8(1):95-100. [PubMed Citation]
  - Program descriptions
    - Psychological First Aid for Students and Teachers: Listen, Protect, Connect - Model and Teach (PDF - 429 KB) (DOE)
    - Listen, Protect and Connect: Family to Family, Neighbor to Neighbor: Psychological First Aid for the Community Helping Each Other (PDF - 2.1 MB) (Los Angeles county Department of Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Program)
    - Listen, Protect, Connect--Model and Teach: Psychological First Aid for Students and Teachers (PDF - 2.03 MB) (UCLA and others)
    - Listen, Protect, and Connect: Psychological First Aid for Children and Parents-Helping You And Your Child In Times Of Disaster (PDF - 884 KB) (UCLA and others)
Responder Willingness to Serve during Radiation Disasters
- Balicer RD, Catlett CL, Barnett DJ, Thompson CB, Hsu EB, Morton MJ, Semon NL, Watson CM, Gwon HS, Links JM. Characterizing hospital workers' willingness to respond to a radiological event. PLoS One. 2011;6(10):e25327. [PubMed Citation]
- Sheikh S, McCormick LC, Pevear J, Adoff S, Walter FG, Kazzi ZN, Radiological preparedness-awareness and attitudes: a cross-sectional survey of emergency medicine residents and physicians at three academic institutions in the United States. Clin Toxicol (Phila). 2012 Jan;50(1):34-8. Epub 2011 Dec 19. [PubMed Citation]
- Becker SM, Middleton SA. Improving hospital preparedness for radiological terrorism: perspectives from emergency department physicians and nurses. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2008 Oct;2(3):174-84. [PubMed Citation]
- Veenema TG, Walden B, Feinstein N, Williams J. Factors Affecting Hospital-based Nurses' Willingness to Respond to a Radiation Emergency. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2008 Dec;2(4):224-9. [PubMed Citation]

Issues for Affected Populations

Carr Z, Maeda M, Oughton D, Weiss W. Non-radiological impact of a nuclear emergency: preparedness and response with the focus on health. Radiat Prot Dosimetry. 2018 Dec 1;182(1):112-119. [PubMed Citation]
Social, psychological, and behavioral responses to a nuclear detonation in a US city: implications for health care planning and delivery. Dodgen D, Norwood AE, Becker SM, Perez JT, Hansen CK. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2011 Mar;5 Suppl 1:S54-64. [PubMed Citation]
Gouweloos J, DückersM, te Brake H, Kleber R, Drogendijk A. Psychosocial care to affected citizens and communities in case of CBRN incidents: a systematic review. Environ Int. 2014 Nov;72:46-65. [PubMed Citation]

Other Resources

From Radiological Incidents to Nuclear Calamities: Social, Behavioral, and Risk Communication Issues in Radiation Emergencies, Lecture by Steven Becker, Ph.D. (1 hour:09 min video for 10th Annual IDMH conference, SUNY New Palz, April 19, 2013)
Chernobyl at Twenty (NCRP Program Presentation No. 42), National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, Bethesda, MD, 2006.
Becker SM. Emergency Communication and Information Issues in Terrorism Events Involving Radioactive Materials. (PDF - 89 KB) Biosecurity and Bioterrorism. 2004;2(3): 195-207.[PubMed Citation]
Preparing for the Psychological Consequences of Terrorism: A Public Health Strategy, Committee on Responding to the Psychological Consequences of Terrorism, Butler AS, Panzer AM, Goldfrank LR, eds., Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, The National Academies Press, Washington, DC, 2003
Management of Terrorist Events Involving Radioactive Material (NCRP Report No. 138), National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, Bethesda, MD, 2001. (See Chapter 5: Psychosocial Effects of Radiological Terrorist Incidents, pp. 54-69.)
Becker SM: Psychosocial Effects of Radiation Accidents. In: Gusev IA, Guskova AK, Mettler FA Jr, eds.: Medical Management of Radiation Accidents, 2nd ed. Boca Raton, Fl: CRC Press, 2001, pp. 519-525.