Mental Health Response to Mass Violence and Terrorism

Target audience and instructional level of this course: foundational

There is no known conflict of interest or commercial support related to this CE program.

TRAINING

Course Description

Mental Health Response to Mass Violence and Terrorism

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Course Description

This course aims to provide the reader with the tools for an appropriate mental health response to mass violence and terrorism. A mass violence event can take many forms but is generally defined as an intentional violent criminal act that results in physical, emotional, or psychological injury to a large number of people. Mass violence can manifest itself through terrorist attacks, mass shootings, riots and bioterrorism attacks. For survivors and witnesses of mass shootings, suffering tends to be particularly severe. Studies have documented that survivors of mass shootings often suffer from post-traumatic stress Disorder (PTSD), major depression, anxiety disorder and substance use disorder.

But what are the most effective mental health responses following large-scale traumatic events? It is essential to understand how and when resilience-building interventions must be carried out, be it at the immediate, intermediate or long-term aftermath of an event. Information on the major lessons learned in behavioral health following episodes of mass violence is provided, and related issues are woven into the discussion of strategies for assisting victims, survivors and the community-at large.

Learning Objectives

After completing this training the professional will be able to:

Mental Health Response to Mass Violence and Terrorism

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Learning Objectives

After completing this training the health care professional will be able to:

• Assist victims, survivors, and family members cope with trauma and loss
• Assist victims, survivors, and family members participate in the criminal justice process
• Assist the community-at large in recovery through education, outreach, and support
• Describe and manage service providers' own work-related stress responses.
• Outline major lessons learned in behavioral health following episodes of mass violence, such as the tsunami, Katrina, etc
• Assess risk and protective factors of various populations as regards to mental health and disasters or emergencies
• Define crisis intervention
• Identify signs and symptoms of distress
• Describe and utilize tools for effective crisis interventions
• Apply knowledge from this course to practice and/or other professional contexts.

Author(s)/Reference(s)

Deborah J. Wolfe, Ph.D., M.S.P.H.
Director and Co-founder, Project Opportunity
Published by SAMHSA