Disaster Mental Health Around The World And Across Time An Issue Of Psychiatric Clinics

Disasters! Looking beyond their acute impact to how they affect communities in the years that follow is the focus of discussion in this issue of Psychiatric Clinics. Reviews of cases of well known disasters such as 9/11, the 2004 South Asian tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, the Haiti earthquake of 2010, the 3/11/11 "triple disaster" in Northern Japan, and others are presented from the perspective of local experts who have been asked to take a long view of what they learned and may still be learning from their post-disaster experiences that mental health professionals faced with future disasters should know. World renown experts in disaster psychiatry and global psychiatry, Craig Katz and Anand Pandya, lead this publication.

Disasters! Looking beyond their acute impact to how they affect communities in the years that follow is the focus of discussion in this issue of Psychiatric Clinics. Reviews of cases of well known disasters such as 9/11, the 2004 South Asian tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, the Haiti earthquake of 2010, the 3/11/11 "triple disaster" in Northern Japan, and others are presented from the perspective of local experts who have been asked to take a long view of what they learned and may still be learning from their post-disaster experiences that mental health professionals faced with future disasters should know. World renown experts in disaster psychiatry and global psychiatry, Craig Katz and Anand Pandya, lead this publication.

This book presents a decade of advances in the psychological, biological and social responses to disasters, helping medics and leaders prepare and react.

In the devastation that follows a major disaster, there is a need for multiple sectors to unite and devote new resources to support the rebuilding of infrastructure, the provision of health and social services, the restoration of care delivery systems, and other critical recovery needs. In some cases, billions of dollars from public, private and charitable sources are invested to help communities recover. National rhetoric often characterizes these efforts as a "return to normal." But for many American communities, pre-disaster conditions are far from optimal. Large segments of the U.S. population suffer from preventable health problems, experience inequitable access to services, and rely on overburdened health systems. A return to pre-event conditions in such cases may be short-sighted given the high costs - both economic and social - of poor health. Instead, it is important to understand that the disaster recovery process offers a series of unique and valuable opportunities to improve on the status quo. Capitalizing on these opportunities can advance the long-term health, resilience, and sustainability of communities - thereby better preparing them for future challenges. Healthy, Resilient, and Sustainable Communities After Disasters identifies and recommends recovery practices and novel programs most likely to impact overall community public health and contribute to resiliency for future incidents. This book makes the case that disaster recovery should be guided by a healthy community vision, where health considerations are integrated into all aspects of recovery planning before and after a disaster, and funding streams are leveraged in a coordinated manner and applied to health improvement priorities in order to meet human recovery needs and create healthy built and natural environments. The conceptual framework presented in Healthy, Resilient, and Sustainable Communities After Disasters lays the groundwork to achieve this goal and provides operational guidance for multiple sectors involved in community planning and disaster recovery. Healthy, Resilient, and Sustainable Communities After Disasters calls for actions at multiple levels to facilitate recovery strategies that optimize community health. With a shared healthy community vision, strategic planning that prioritizes health, and coordinated implementation, disaster recovery can result in a communities that are healthier, more livable places for current and future generations to grow and thrive - communities that are better prepared for future adversities.

Apart from Alzheimer's dementia, depressive disorders are emerging to account for the next greatest share of disability among older adults. Depressive illnesses complicate the recovery of many important medical illnesses and are associated with suicide death in the elderly at rates exceeding those seen in young adults. This issue of Psychiatric Clinics provides information for general adult psychiatrists, internal medicine geriatricians, and primary care physicians and care extenders to enable them to meet the most basic needs of depressed older adults. Topics in this issue address the questions: What is late life depression? What are the unique cognitive deficits seen in late life depression? What is the nature of the two-way relationship between medical illness and depression in late life depression? What complications arise from late life depression? What is the relationship between late life depression and dementing illnesses? What assessments should be done of the person with suspected late life depression? What are the psychological treatments for late life depression? What is the role of medications in late life depression? What is the role of alternative treatments in late life depression? Is there a role for ECT/TMS/VNS in late life depression? Vaughn McCall of Georgia Health Sciences University provides his expertise to lead this issue.

Originally discussed in the context of "Paraphilias", this edition of Psychiatric Clinics of North America covers topics in sexual deviancy. The psychiatric community has revised this term through several editions of the DSM, indicating the view of these disorders changing from "sociopathic sexual deviation" to "sexual deviation of nonpsychotic mental disorder" to "paraphilias and paraphilic disorders." No matter how it is stated, this edition addresses sexual deviation assessemnt and treatment, covering conditions that harm others and that typically involve a legal/criminal/forensic component. Topics include Assessment; Mental illness and sexual offending; Treatment of sexual offenders-Psychological and Pharmacological; Professional sexual misconduct including clergy; Adolescent sexual offenders; Child pornography and sexual deviance; Sexual sadism and sexually motivated homicide; Dysfunctional anger and sexual violence; and Ethical issues in the treatment of sexual offenders. Highly renown for their research and clinical work in the nature of sexucal disorder, Dr Bradford and Dr Ahmed lead this edition intended for psychiatrists and other medical professionals dealing with this population.

It is widely recognized that neuropsychiatric disturbances contribute substantially to disability among persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI). This issue of Psychiatric Clinics addresses the most common and the most clinically challenging neuropsychiatric sequelae of TBI. The overarching aim of this publication is to provide clinicians with information about the clinical characteristics, diagnostic assessment, neurobiology and treatment of these conditions that will be useful in their work with individuals and families affected by TBI. Topics include: Posttraumatic Encephalopathy; Cognitive Disorders after TBI; Emotional and Behavioral Dyscontrol after TBI; Mood Disorders following TBI; Apathy following TBI; Psychotic Disorders following TBI; Sleep and Fatigue following TBI; TBI and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder; Neuropsychiatry of Persistent Post-concussive Symptoms; Psychiatric Disorders following Pediatric TBI.

The issue of the mental health consequences of disasters is always timely, but, at present, its consideration serves a pressing need if one takes into account the great number of co-existing and super-imposed disasters occurring throughout the world. Taking Greece as an example, on top of the economic disaster that has produced serious mental health problems, the country is faced with a serious refugee problem produced by human-made disasters that have occurred elsewhere and produce serious mental health problems to the refugees and the host population alike. This volume deals with the mental health consequences of Natural Disasters, Human-made Disasters, and a third category, Economic Disasters. This volume will help contribute to more efficient management and mitigation of the mental health effects of such disasters.