Psychological First Aid: Restoring mental wellbeing during a crisis
Psychological First Aid is the first step in mental well-being during any disaster or traumatic experience.
Hyderabad: We have often come across the term ‘first aid’ at our homes, or in our schools. The first thing that comes to our mind is a first aid kit with band-aids, cotton, disinfectants, bandages and the likes. This applies to the ‘physical’ first aid and is used to take immediate actions when a person gets injured or hurt in their body. There is a similar first aid present for our psychological health also which delivers to the wellbeing of our emotions, behaviours, and mental processes. Read on more about Psychological First Aid…
What is Psychological First Aid?
Psychological First Aid is the first step in mental well-being during any disaster or traumatic experience. People who have been victims of crises like earthquakes, floods, wars, pandemics, accidents, fires, violence, etc face difficulty in the coping and functioning normal in their day-to-day lives. Psychological First Aid comes into play here.
It is the initial intervention to examine, assist and support the people who are suffering and need help. The main goal is to establish safety, create an immediate stable environment for needs, reduce stress, foster adjustment, and redirect the survivors with additional resources.
How does PFA help survivors?
Feelings of sadness, guilt, anger, anxiety, confusion, numbness, hopelessness, and helplessness can overpower a person during adverse situations. Mental processes like decision making, reasoning, easy communication with others also get hindered. Some may even feel shortness of breath, rising heartbeat, and shaking or trembling.
Psychological First Aid aims to reduce and alleviate such conditions among the survivors. Not everyone goes through such conditions, these feelings and coping methods are highly subjective. For those who need psychosocial support, Psychological First Aid helps in ensuring safety, promoting calmness and stability, maintaining connectedness, encouraging self-value and group value, and lastly, instilling hope.
Who can provide Psychological First Aid?
Psychological First Aid can be provided by anybody, but they must have adequate training in it. A wide range of people in the community can support the survivors – first responders, police personnel, health care workers, social workers, rehabilitation agencies.
Skills required to be a PFA provider:
Respect the survivors
Good communication
Non-judgemental behaviour
Active listening
Compassion
Identifying who needs support
Access to services and resources
How is Psychological First Aid different from Mental Health First Aid and Therapy?
| Psychological First Aid | Mental Health First Aid | Psychological Therapy |
| Narrow focus | Broader focus | Long term intervention |
| Delivered in situations of crisis | Delivered in case of a mental health crisis | Delivered in case of a diagnosed mental disorder |
| Works to prevent any serious physical or psychological problems during or after any disaster/traumatic experience | Aims to identify, understand, and help individuals who may be developing a mental health condition/disorder | Professional help and intervention for a range of mental health problems and illnesses that is done for the treatment of the patient |
| Psychological First Aid (PFA) in brief | |
| What | a humane, supportive, and practical response to a person who has been exposed to serious stresses and may need support |
| For | survivors/victims of traumatic situations |
| Why | urgent psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery |
| When | during or after the crisis |
| Where | relief camps, clinics, hospitals, community centres |
| By | any trained PFA provider |
An initiative by: The Bright Side Foundation.
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