Safety Assessment Program Evaluator Student Manual

CA Emergency Mgmt. Agency Safety Assessment Program Evaluator Manual April 2011Photo courtesy Raymond Lui, SEAFigure 7-7 – Mud slipping hazard, 2005 Hurricane Katrina7.2 Critical Incident Stress DisorderCritical Incident Stress Disorder (CISD) can affect emergency workers after working long hoursover a number of days. SAP evaluators are only deployed for five days in the field so as toreduce exposure to this problem. However, the local government staff have been facing downthe disaster since it started, and they may be exhibiting symptoms of CISD. This disorder canalso creep into the mindset of SAP evaluators also, if stress relieving measures are not taken.Knowing the causes and symptoms will help SAP evaluators to better understand what others arefeeling. This will also help SAP evaluators to avoid getting CISD themselves.Critical Incident Stress Disorder can be caused, in whole or in part, by the following:Long hours, working 12 to 14 hour shifts (or longer), or performing heavy manual workfor long periods of time.Emotional turbulence incurred in dealing with the disaster. People encountered in thedisaster are frightened, exhibiting high emotional states, encouraging the same high levelof emotions in the disaster workers.Loss – a sense of loss when looking around and taking stock of the damage. „Will thecommunity ever recover?‟Destruction – the sense of utter devastation associated with large events such as powerfulearthquakes.217