Volunteer clinical experiences as part of the New York Police Department’s Police Organization Providing Peer Assistance (POPPA) program are described in providing critical incident stress debriefings (CISD) to NYC emergency rescue personnel. Also, there is a discussion of distinctive aspects of September 11th that both characterize and confound a successful post-9/11 recovery, to include the intertwining of personal and national reactions to global terrorism and socio-political forces. Such factors, along with concerns about the efficacy of “one-shot clinical interventions,” form the rationale for a “Phase 2 CISD intervention model” that is described.
American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text revision). Washington, DC: Author.
2.
Austin, P. C., Mamdani, M. M., Jaakkimainen, L. & Hux, J. E. (2002). Trends in drug prescriptions among elderly residents of Ontario in the weeks after September 11, 2002. Journal of the American Medical Association, 288, 575-577.
3.
Avery, A. & Orner, R. (1998). First report of psychological debriefing abandoned-----the end of an era?Traumatic Stress Points, Summer, 3-4.
4.
Avery, A., King, S. I., Bretherton, R., & Orner, R. (1999). Deconstructing psychological debriefing and the emergence of calls for evidence-based practice. Traumatic Stress Points, Spring, 6-8.
5.
Ayalon, O. (1993). Posttraumatic stress recovery of terrorist survivors. In J. P. Wilson & B. Raphael (Eds.), The International Handbook Of Traumatic Stress Syndromes (pp. 855-866). New York: Plenum.
6.
Beck, A. T., (1979). Cognitive therapy and emotional disorders. NY: New American Library.
7.
Bell, J. L. (1995). Traumatic event debriefings: Service delivery designs and the role of social work. Social Work, 40 (a), 36-43.
8.
Benson, Herbert. (1975). The Relaxation Response. Avon Books, NY.
9.
Boscarino, J. A., Galea, S., Ahern, J., Resnick, H. & Vlahov, D. (2002). Utilization of mental health services following the September 11th terrorist attacks in Manhattan, New York. International Journal of Emergency Mental Health, 4, 143-155.
10.
Boyle, J. (2002, September 11). Importance of family holds true. Letter to the Editor, USA Today, 12A-12A.
11.
Carlisle, D. (2002, September 11). Letter to the Editor, USA Today, 12A-12A.
12.
Cauchon, D., & O’Dricoll, P. (2001, September 12). Harsh reality of terrorism hits home. USA Today, pp. 8A-9A.
13.
Firmin, P. (2002, September 10). Life takes on new meaning after attacks. www.sunherrald.com, A4-A4.
14.
Fontana, A. & Rosenheck, R. (1996a). An evaluation of the inpatient treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder in Department of Veterans Affairs specialized PSD programs. West Haven, CT: Department of Veterans Affairs, Northeast Program Evaluation Center (NEPEC), VA Connecticut Health Care System—West Haven Campus.
15.
Fontana, A. & Rosenheck, R. (1996b, January). Improving the efficiency of outpatient treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder. Administration and Policy in Mental Health, 23 (3), 197-210.
16.
Fontana, A. & Rosenheck, R. (1997, June). Effectiveness and cost of the inpatient treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder; Comparison of three models of treatment. American Journal of Psychiatry, 154 (6), 758-765.
17.
Frankl, V. (1959). Man’s search for meaning. An introduction to logotherapy. Boston: Beacon Press.
18.
Hampson, R. (2002a, September 10). September 10, 2001. The day before. USA Today, p. 1A-1A.
19.
Hampson, R. (2002b, September 11). Attacks didn’t change “everything”----but no one is quite the same. USA Today, p. 2A-2A.
20.
Holland, J. (2003). Personal communication. April 11.
21.
Koplewicz, H. S., Vogel, J. M., Solanto, M. V., Morrissey, R. F., Alonso, C. M., Abikoff, H., Gallagher, R. & Novick, R. M. (2002). Child and parent response to the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 15, 77-85.
22.
Kubany, E. S. (1992). A cognitive model of guilt typology in combat-related PTSD. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 7 (1), 3-19.
23.
Kulka, R. A., Schlenger, W. E., Fairbank, J. A., Hough, R. L., Jordan, B. K., Marmar, C. R. & Weiss, D. S. (1990). Trauma and the Vietnam War generation: Report of findings from the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
24.
Lampert, R., Baron, S. J., McPherson, C. A. & Lee, F. A. (2002). Heart rate variability during the week of September 11, 2001. Journal of the American Medical Association, 288, 575-575.
25.
McKinsey Report (2002). Improving NYPD Emergency Preparedness and Responses. August 19.
26.
Mitchell, J. (1983). When disaster strikes: the critical incident stress debriefing process. Journal of Emergency Medical Services. 8, 36-39.
27.
Mitchell, J. T., & Dyregrov, A. (1993). Traumatic stress in disaster workers and emergency personnel: Prevention and intervention. In J. P. Wilson & B. Raphael, International Handbook of Traumatic Stress Syndromes (905-914). New York: Plenum Press.
28.
Mitchell, J. T., & Everly, G.S (1994). Critical incident stress debriefing: The basic course workbook. Ellicott City, MD: International Critical Incident Stress Foundation.
29.
Mitchell, J. T., & Everly, G. S. (1998). Critical incident stress management: A new era in crisis Intervention. Traumatic Stress Points, Fall, 6-7.
30.
Obenchain, J. V., & Silver, S. .M. (1991). Symbolic recognition: Ceremony in a treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 5, 37-42.
31.
Perls, F., Hefferline, R. F., & Goodman, P. (1951). Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality. NY: Delta Books.
32.
Polk, C. (2002, September 11). Strangers became friends. Letter to the Editor, USA Today, 12A-12A.
33.
Polster, E., & Polster, M. (1973). Gestalt therapy integrated. NY: Brunner/Mazel
34.
Reddick, A. L. (2002, September 11). Let’s not force families to relive the pain. Letter to the Editor, www.sunherald.com, E-5-E-5.
35.
Scallon, M. (2002, September 10). A new focus on family, community. www.sunherald.com, A1-A1.
36.
Schiraldi, G. R. (2000). The posttraumatic stress disorder source book. A guide to healing, recovery, and growth (pp. 310-311). Los Angeles: Lowell House.
37.
Scurfield, R. M., (2002a) Commentary about the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001. Posttraumatic reactions and related social and policy issues. Trauma, Violence & Abuse, 3 (1), January, 3-14. On Line at University of Southern Mississippi home page: Raymond.Scurfield@usm.edu).
38.
Scurfield. R. M., (2002b). Coping with posttraumatic reactions to September 11th. Psychology Today, 35 (1), January-February.
39.
Scurfield, R. M. (1994). Treatment of war-related trauma: An integrative experiential, cognitive and spiritual approach. In M. B. Williams & J. F. Sommer (Eds.), The Handbook of Post-Traumatic Therapy (181-203). Westport, CN: Greenwood Publishing.
40.
Scurfield, R. M. (1993). Treatment of PTSD in Vietnam veterans. In Wilson, J. P., & Raphael, B. (Eds.). The International Handbook of Traumatic Stress. Current trends in the treatment of posttraumatic stress. (pp. 879-888). NY: Plenum Press.
41.
Scurfield, R. M. (1992). The collusion of sanitization and silence about the impact of war. An outcome of Operation Desert Storm. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 5 (3), 505-512.
42.
Scurfield, R. M. & Wilson, J. P. (2003, in press). Ask not for whom the bell tolls. Controversy in post-traumatic stress disorder treatment outcome findings for war veterans. Trauma, Violence and Abuse.
43.
Segman, R. H., Cooper-Kazaz, R., Macciardi, F., Goltser, T., Halfon, Y., Dobroborski, T. & Shalev, A. Y. (2002). Association between the dopamine transporter gene and posttraumatic stress disorder. Molecular Psychiatry, 7, 903-907.
44.
Selye, Hans. (1976). The stress of life. McGraw HillBook Co., NY.
45.
Silver, R. C., Holman, E. A., McIntosh, D. N., Poulin, M. & Gil-Rivas, V. (2002). Nationwide longitudinal study of psychological responses to September 11. Journal of the American Medical Association, 288, 1235-1244.
46.
True, W. R., Rice, J.Eisen, S. A., Heath, A. C., Goldberg, J., Lyons, M. J., Nowak, J. (1993). A twin study of genetic and environmental contributions to liability for posttraumatic stress symptoms. Archives of General Psychiatry, 50, 257-264.
47.
van der Kolk, B. S., Greenberg, M. S., Boyd, H., & Krystal, J. (1985). Inescapable shock, neurotransmitters, and addiction to trauma: Towards a psychobiology of PTSD. Biological Psychiatry, 20, 314-325.
48.
Viola, J., Ditzler, T., Batzer, W., Adams, D., Lettich, L., Harazin, J., & Berigan, T. (1996). Pharmacologic management of posttraumatic stress disorder. A clinical summary of a four-year retrospective study. Military Medicine, 162, 616-619.
49.
Viola, J,. Ditzler, T. (1994). Posttraumatic stress disorder and Socio-political context: A comment. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases. P. 245-245.
50.
Xian, H., Chantarujikapong, S. I., Scherrer, J. F., Eisen, S. A., Lyons, M. J., Goldberg, J.et al. (2000). Genetic and environmental influences on PTSD, alcohol and drug dependence in twin pairs. Drug & Alcohol Dependence, 61, 95-102.
