Identifying skills for the performance of SUAS' psychologists during the disasters' response

• Grant number: 16/23747-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: April 01, 2017
• End date: March 31, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Psychological Treatment and Prevention
• Principal Investigator: Maria de Jesus Dutra dos Reis
• Grantee: Denise Aparecida Passarelli
• Host Institution: Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The National Policy of Civil Defense defines disaster as "a result of adverse events, either natural or made man, on a vulnerable scenario, causing serious disturbance in the functioning of a community". In disaster situations, the law provides that both the Defense Civil and the Social Health System should act together offering physical, psychological and social protections to those affected. The literature has shown that victims of a disaster can develop a range of psychopathology, such as Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Acute Stress Disorder (ASD), depression, so on. The psychiatric disorders most frequently associated with the disaster's occurrence is the PTSD; its symptoms are: the re-trial of the traumatic event, memories and recurring nightmares, intense physiological reactions and avoidance. The work of the psychologist in the response to disaster is a fundamental tool to protect the mental health of those affected. Nevertheless, the psychologist must have a specific skill repertoire to work in the disaster context; to work with a devoid of evidence may be potentially harmful to the victims as for the professional himself. As a result, Ricardo (2013) developed an instrument which tried to systematize the keys skills that the psychologist should developed to act both efficiently and effective in the response during disasters, which was applied in 18 agents or coordinators of the Civil Defense and five (5) psychologists. The present work intent to replicate the Ricardo' research (2013), increasing the sample of the population. The goals of the study are:(1) outline the profile of psychologists working in Social Health Sistem; (2) assess the skills identified as important; (3) verify if these professionals have dominion over these skills identified as important; (4) examine the knowledge about PTSD and the perception of the importance of identifying early on the risk factors for this disorder; (5) assess present themselves symptoms of PTSD. They will be selected professionals from municipalities of São Paulo, which suffered some water-related disaster between the years 1995 and 2015, with more than 30 homeless or at least one dead. The units of social assistance will be contacted by email and psychologists will be asked to answer the online questionnaire. The data will be analyzed used inferential and descriptive statistics, which will: (1) identify the formation of the psychologist; (2) identify the high importance which are identified as some of domain skills; (3) verify that psychologists who have worked in disaster have symptoms of PTSD. (AU)