VIDEO: Rapid response to mass trauma events key to addressing psychological symptoms

SAN FRANCISCO — Immediate psych-based response to mass traumatic events like school shootings is crucial to fostering a sense of safety for those who experience them, according to a presenter at the American Psychiatric Association annual meeting.

“There are a range of reactions that we know happen after mass shootings and other violent episodes,” Elspeth Cameron Ritchie, MD, MPH, a professor of psychiatry at Georgetown University School of Medicine, said in this Healio video. “Usually these consist of acute distress, flashbacks, fear of (the event) happening again, worry about where family members are and other signs of distress.”

Advance planning, Ritchie added, is of utmost importance for behavioral health practitioners, as is their ability to confer and collaborate with other disaster planners.

Since 9/11, she noted, response has shifted from open discussion of events to focusing on rapid intervention in the aftermath of a traumatic event, which includes increased communication, encouraging a sense of safety, security, comfort and eventually, referral to mental health professionals.