Department of Psychiatry, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA.
Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2011 Sep;5 Suppl 2:S214-9. doi: 10.1001/dmp.2011.53. Epub 2011 Aug 24.
Hurricane Katrina highlighted both the crucial role of first responders in times of disaster and the resultant stress on them and their families. The primary objective of this study was to describe the mental health status and symptoms of first responders in the New Orleans area. We further hypothesized that given the extent of the disaster and slowness of recovery, symptoms of posttraumatic stress and depression would not decrease after the first-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.
A total of 1382 first responders, including respondents from police, fire, emergency medical services, and city workers, participated in this longitudinal study. The first screening was conducted between 6 and 9 months after Hurricane Katrina and the second round of data collection was conducted 13 to 18 months after the hurricane. A subsample of the respondents (n = 87) were matched at both time points, which allowed for paired sample comparisons. We measured all of the respondents' levels of traumatic experiences, alcohol use, partner conflict, requests for services, posttraumatic stress, and depression.
More than one-quarter of the first responders reported the following traumatic experiences: witnessed injury or death (70%); damage to home (93%); injury to a friend (25%); and previous loss or trauma (30%). Data also revealed that at least 10% of the respondents had significant levels of posttraumatic stress symptoms; 25% of the participants reported significant levels of depression; and more than 40% reported increased alcohol use and conflict with partner (41%). A statistically significant decrease in the symptoms of posttraumatic stress or depression was not found within 18 months of Hurricane Katrina.
Results suggest that the severity of the traumas experienced from both the impact of Hurricane Katrina and the subsequent recovery has important mental health implications for first responders. Reports of symptoms of anxiety or depression should be attended to so as to prevent increasing symptoms that could negatively affect the first responder and his or her family. These findings highlight the importance of not only providing mental health services for first responders but also having adequate plans in place before natural or technological disasters strike.
卡特里娜飓风凸显了急救人员在灾难中的关键作用，以及他们及其家人所承受的压力。本研究的主要目的是描述新奥尔良地区急救人员的心理健康状况和症状。我们进一步假设，鉴于灾难的严重程度和恢复的缓慢，创伤后应激和抑郁症状不会在卡特里娜飓风一周年之后减少。
共有 1382 名急救人员参与了这项纵向研究，包括警察、消防、紧急医疗服务和城市工作人员。第一次筛查是在卡特里娜飓风发生后 6 至 9 个月进行的，第二次数据收集是在飓风发生后 13 至 18 个月进行的。在两个时间点对受访者的一个子样本（n=87）进行了匹配，这允许进行配对样本比较。我们测量了所有受访者的创伤经历、酒精使用、伴侣冲突、服务请求、创伤后应激和抑郁水平。
超过四分之一的急救人员报告了以下创伤经历：目睹伤害或死亡（70%）；房屋受损（93%）；朋友受伤（25%）；以及以前的损失或创伤（30%）。数据还显示，至少有 10%的受访者有显著的创伤后应激症状；25%的参与者报告有显著的抑郁症状；超过 40%的人报告酒精使用增加和与伴侣冲突（41%）。在卡特里娜飓风发生后 18 个月内，没有发现创伤后应激或抑郁症状明显减少。
研究结果表明，卡特里娜飓风的影响以及随后的恢复所带来的创伤的严重程度对急救人员的心理健康有重要影响。应该关注焦虑或抑郁症状的报告，以防止症状加重，从而对急救人员及其家人产生负面影响。这些发现强调了不仅要为急救人员提供心理健康服务，而且要在自然灾害或技术灾害发生之前制定充分计划的重要性。
