Psychological First Aid: Rapid proliferation and the search for evidence

James M Shultz, David Forbes, James M Shultz, David Forbes

Abstract

Psychological first aid (PFA) has become the flagship early intervention for disaster survivors, with recent adaptations for disaster responders, in the post-9/11 era. PFA is broadly endorsed by expert consensus and integrated into guidelines for mental health and psychosocial support in disasters and extreme events. PFA frameworks are proliferating, with increasing numbers of models developed for delivery by a range of providers for use with an expanding array of target populations. Despite popularity and promotion there remains a dearth of evidence for effectiveness and recent independent reviews of PFA have highlighted this important gap. This commentary juxtaposes the current propagation of PFA against the compelling need to produce evidence for effectiveness and suggests a series of actions to prioritize and expedite real-time, real-event field evaluation of PFA.

Keywords: early intervention; evaluation; evidence; five essential elements; psychological first aid; stress first aid.

Figures

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/instance/5314921/bin/kdsh-02-01-10926006-g001.jpg
Figure 1. Cover for Coping in Today’s World: Psychological First Aid and Resilience for Families, Friends and Neighbors, the psychological first aid curriculum developed by the American Red Cross., The American Red Cross commissioned the review of psychological first aid effectiveness.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/instance/5314921/bin/kdsh-02-01-10926006-g002.jpg
Figure 2. Covers, in six languages, for Psychological First Aid: Guide for Field Workers developed by the World Health Organization, War Trauma Foundation, and World Vision International with special applications for low and middle income countries. This version of psychological first aid is being used globally in humanitarian crises and complex emergencies.

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Source: PubMed

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