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Disaster Behavioral Health Information Series Resource Center
The SAMHSA Disaster Technical Assistance Center (DTAC) provides various resources and useful information for those in the disaster behavioral health field.
All resources for which links are provided are in the public domain or have been authorized for noncommercial use. Hardcopies of some materials may be ordered. If you use content from resources in this collection in program materials, you should acknowledge the source of the materials. Nothing in these other than SAMHSA resources constitutes a direct or indirect endorsement by SAMHSA or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services of any non-federal entity’s products, services, or policies.
Did you know you can download your search results? Simply apply search filters and then click on the Download Filtered Resources link to obtain a .csv file with the resources you have found, including each resource’s name, description, date, URL, and source.
This website from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security provides information, guidance, and resources for individuals and communities preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disaster and emergency events. It includes resources for various age groups and provides tips for creating an effective individual and family disaster plan.
This website from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security provides information, guidance, and resources for individuals and communities preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disaster and emergency events. It includes resources for various age groups and provides tips for creating an effective individual and family disaster plan.
Funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and administered by SAMHSA, the CCP is a supplemental grant program to help states, territories, and federally recognized tribes affected by major disasters to address the mental health and substance use-related needs of their residents. This web page details trainings for staff employed by FEMA and SAMHSA’s CCP.
This online course offers approaches first responders can use to maximize safety in scenes where an individual is in mental illness- or substance use-related crisis. The 1.5-hour course covers mental and substance use disorders, as well as de-escalation techniques.
Designed for law enforcement officers, this free online course describes common stressors in the line of duty and identifies ways to manage stress. The course highlights signs and symptoms of stress, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and suicidal thoughts that law enforcement officers may notice in themselves or their coworkers. It also provides information on where and how to seek additional help.
This free, 1-hour online course for fire and emergency medical services (EMS) personnel provides information on stressors and behavioral health issues and conditions that are more common in fire and EMS. It also covers techniques for healthy coping and stress management. The course is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Pre-hospital Continuing Education for continuing education credit.
Hosted by the Pacific ADA Center, this webinar details the significance of effective communication in emergency management. The webinar draws from real-life scenarios, specifically from the emergency management field, to define effective communication and describe how emergency managers can build upon their public communication approach.
This handout provides information for parents including reactions and/or behavior they may notice in preschool-age children after a disaster and suggestions for what to say and do once the disaster is over. This resource is part of the Psychological First Aid (PFA) Field Operations Guide, which helps people provide PFA, an evidence-informed, modular approach for assisting disaster survivors.
This document offers information on how school-age children commonly react to disasters and how parents can respond. It is part of the Psychological First Aid (PFA) Field Operations Guide, which prepares people to deliver PFA, an evidence-informed, modular approach anyone can use to assist disaster survivors.
Part of the Psychological First Aid (PFA) Field Operations Guide, this handout helps parents understand how infants and toddlers may be feeling after disaster. It also lists ways for parents to help their young children cope with disaster. PFA is an evidence-informed, modular approach anyone can use to assist disaster survivors.
Part of the Psychological First Aid (PFA) Field Operations Guide, this handout provides parents with tips for how to respond to an adolescent child after a disaster. The document includes adolescents’ possible reactions, how parents can respond, and examples of what parents can do and say.
This web page provides disaster planners and leaders with information and tools for creating a hazard mitigation plan that addresses both the possible impacts of climate crises and the extreme events particular to their local areas. From exploring best practices to learning about current laws and policies, web page resources are designed to help states, territories, and tribal governments build effective mitigation plans.
At this web page, DHS details First Responder Capability, a program dedicated to providing first responders with technical assistance and inventive solutions to challenges caused by the nature of their jobs. The web page provides information on grants and training, fact sheets, and additional topical research and resources.
This free course, offered by FEMA, was developed for staff members working in disaster operations at a FEMA Joint Field Office or other disaster response efforts and areas. It offers ideas for the inclusion of people with disabilities and other access and functional needs in disaster response, both as responders and as members of communities affected by disasters.
This resource from FEMA provides culturally competent and tribal-focused guidance for tribal governments seeking assistance pursuing disaster response and recovery planning. Designed for tribal government leadership and stakeholders, the guide includes steps for designing disaster plans that meet the unique needs of a tribal community.
This tip sheet describes aspects of the transition families go through when a member returns home after a disaster deployment. It also suggests ways that family members can navigate the transition and support the responder in coping with the return home.
This tip sheet describes aspects of the transition families go through when a member returns home after a disaster deployment. It also suggests ways that family members other than the responder can navigate the transition and support the responder in coping with the return home.
This tip sheet describes some of the challenges involved in disaster response work and how these challenges may make responders more vulnerable to substance misuse. It lists signs of substance misuse, suggests ways to address substance misuse issues in yourself or someone you care about, and identifies resources for additional support.
Created for disaster response workers, this fact sheet provides guidance for preventing and managing stress before, during, and after a disaster response assignment. It explores signs of stress and highlights tips individuals can use throughout disaster response and recovery to increase resilience.
This web page from FEMA provides information regarding disaster planning and recovery for tribal governments in collaboration with federal and state emergency management agencies. It includes guidance for tribal governments interested in seeking assistance after receiving a disaster declaration, background information on FEMA tribal policies, and tools for pursuing disaster planning, mitigation, and funding assistance.
This web page from the SAMHSA Tribal Training and Technical Assistance Center provides resources that American Indian and Alaska Native communities can use to strengthen suicide prevention efforts. It links to a number of fact sheets, toolkits, research articles, and organizations.
This page from the SAMHSA Disaster Technical Assistance Center emphasizes the importance of stress management for responders so they can stay fit to serve disaster-affected communities. The page presents key concepts of disaster behavioral health, encourages responders to deploy as part of an integrated response system and team, and highlights training available to prepare for deployment.
This part of the SAMHSA Disaster Technical Assistance Center (DTAC) website explains that responders face heightened risk of mental illness and substance use disorders due to the nature of their work. It identifies signs of stress; ways to manage stress; and related resources from SAMHSA DTAC, including online trainings and tip sheets.
This web page from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services provides guidance for American Indian and Alaska Native people seeking behavioral health information and support. It explains the importance of behavioral health and provides tools for users to learn about substance use disorders, explore tribal behavioral health coverage, and prepare for a behavioral health appointment.