IDMH to host disaster mental health summit
The Institute for Disaster Mental Health (IDMH) at SUNY New Paltz will host an all-day summit, bringing together leaders of New York State’s mental health and emergency management agencies for the first time, on Friday, May 29.
“The summit aims to improve the provision and coordination of post-disaster support services,” said IDMH Director James Halpern, who noted IDMH received a $50,000 grant from the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services to organize the event. “By doing so, these agencies will be able to streamline a cooperative response when disasters strike, which will help them to reduce the mental health toll of future disasters on communities in New York State.”
According to Halpern, major disasters are often followed by an increased incidence of mental illness, domestic violence, substance abuse and stress-related illness in impacted communities. Professional responders and volunteers who try to help these survivors can also be affected. These mental health consequences of disaster may go unrecognized as officials focus on physical injury, property loss and environmental damage.
“An effective disaster response must meet people’s needs with an appropriate combination of services, a task that requires strong inter-agency cooperation,” said Halpern. “The summit is an opportunity for agencies to establish clear lines of communication and responsibility, enabling them to better coordinate their efforts and strengthen the overall disaster response in New York State.”
Summit participants will include leaders from the New York state, county and city Offices of Emergency Management and Offices of Mental Health, the American Red Cross, the State Office of Victim’s Services, New York State Police, and the New York State National Guard.
As part of the day’s festivities, agency’s capacity, training requirements, roles and responsibilities in disaster response will be reviewed. Participants will then identify barriers to coordination and discuss strategies to ensure a more effective response. After the summit meeting, recommendations will be synthesized and summarized and widely disseminated among organizations in the responder and academic communities, with the goal of informing current and future disaster response plans.
About IDMH
Founded in 2004, the internationally recognized SUNY New Paltz Institute for Disaster Mental Health offers education and training in disaster mental health for students, professionals, and paraprofessionals that reflect recent research and best practices. In addition, the Institute facilitates partnerships between groups active in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery by organizing and hosting trainings, conferences, and multi-agency meetings. IDMH is a primary training partner for New York State agencies including the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, the Department of Health, and the Office of Mental Health. For more information, visit http://www.newpaltz.edu/idmh.