Helping Airport and Air Carrier Employees Cope with Traumatic Events (2009) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 3-16
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From page 3... ...
There are many types of traumatic events than an aviation employee may encounter; those can be, but are not limited to: disease, workplace violence, an aircraft incident/or accident, an actual aircraft crash, terrorism, or a single ramp event. For the purpose of their guidebook, a traumatic event could mean any of the listed examples.
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At the core of the system is the principle of command and control, wherein the first responding agency maintains oversight and enacts other stabilizing protocol until resolutions or transference to a more appropriate entity (National Response Team, n.d.) The key concepts included in the ICS are: Unity of Command, Clear Text (common terminology)
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It is evident that the advisory circular is oriented toward treatment, transport, and evacuation of injured persons, or the response actions; but, the plan does not address the actual airport workers' mental health issues that may arise from working during traumatic events. However, 5
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The area of family care and mental health is delegated to the American Red Cross in the case of commercial air carrier disasters. The American Red Cross activates trained personnel who staff operations centers with primary goals of providing assistance to those in need and coordinating and managing volunteers and organizations who offer counseling, religious, and other support services.
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Pilots and air traffic controllers must be medically screened on a routine basis to be in compliance with Federal Aviation Regulations. Conditions that would restrict their performance include many of those listed as symptom complexes for acute stress reactions, PTSD, or the variety of other psychological or medical complications that may arise.
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This generally prescribes a procedure where ARFF will respond, and other airport employees will provide assistance as needed. It is quite possible that these employees will come in contact with and/or witness traumatic events which could lead to deeper psychological impact.
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They detail recommendations for interventions at the individual and organizational levels. The following is a list of actions which may limit vicarious trauma reaction at the individual level: spending time with other people outside of the work environment/staying connected and not isolating oneself; asking for support; engaging in activities that provide a sense of purpose; attending to physical health; maintaining balance between professional, physical and emotional aspects of life; attaining social support; accepting that emotional distress in trauma survivors is a "normal" reaction to traumatic events; limiting unnecessary exposure to the traumatic event by decreasing exposure through the media/newspaper; maintaining balance in the work situation; taking vacations; identifying personal limits; and talking to coworkers.
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Therefore, "human continuity" is a crucial variable in disaster planning for any organization. Determining what and how to respond to the human or mental health issues that may be present after a traumatic event are extremely important.
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From page 11... ...
. In large-scale disasters, like the terrorist attacks of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, the devastation may threaten or destroy the existing social structure and order.
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From page 12... ...
. Psychological Reactions to Traumatic Events A range of post-traumatic stress reactions can occur for individuals who experience or are exposed to trauma.
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From page 13... ...
. Early Intervention Issues and Strategies in the Acute Stages Following a Traumatic Event Prior to the 1980s, there were no mental health interventions following disasters.
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resulted in decreased resilience. This has some important implications regarding the selection of who will be involved in rescue efforts or in terms of training that focuses on increasing the stress resistance of those who may have repeated exposure to traumatic events.
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Finally, people who had not experienced traumatic events prior to September 11th, who had no recent life stressors, and who had no additional trauma following September 11th were more likely to exhibit resilience. Hoge, Austin and Pollack (2007)
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From page 16... ...
, building up a reserve of tangible resources to be used in the event of a disaster, or building resistance to stress in those most likely to have exposure to trauma (e.g., table-top training exercises; learning how to analyze problems to determine an appropriate course of action)
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