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pece_annotation_1477247314

Sara.Till

This article undertakes reviewing the current approaches to handling mental health in the wake of disasters. It particularly focuses of the current methodologies of research utilized, past methodologies/findings, and how these effect today's approaches to treatment of mental disorders during emergency response. The article begins by discussing the major psychopathology found in populations effected by disasters, including mood disorders such as PTSD and MDD. Other disorders, such as substance abuse and outside symptomologies, are also discussed-- but these first two seem to be the major players addressed here. The work then describes how current comorbidities exist, and how these manifest as pre-disaster risk factors (for example, female disaster survivors are generally more likely to have adverse psychological outcomes, such as PTSD or MDD). Other factors include age, socioeconomic status, and basal trait-level anxiety/depressive symptoms. The report also speaks to during disaster and post-disaster factors as well, as these both have been shown to indicate increased likelihood of developing mental health disorders from a disaster event. Finally, the report delves into current interventions utilized during all three of these time periods (pre, peri, and post), and how these may amplify or diminish the mental health effects of a disaster event. Unfortunately, the paper gives very general guidelines, such as discouraging building in vulnerable locations or testing responses in communities even before disasters occur. For post-disaster preventative measures, however, the report included several key notations-- including implementation of stress debriefings for disaster survivors, and usage of PFA (psychological first aid) to prevent adverse mental health outcomes. 

pece_annotation_1478464769

Sara.Till

The documentary follows Ensingmer during his searches for information and during the government hearing regarding the water contamination. This includes multiple interviews with former residents of the base, including former marines who are currently undergoing treatment for cancer and other illnesses caused by VOM's. The film mainly includes input from these residents; while it does provide some information through texts during pauses in the film, it does not provide exact numerical data, and mostly provides emotional appeals. The film also follow those effected as they attempt to collect information about all of those exposed to the contaminated water, including a spreadsheet of former male residents diagnosed with breast cancer. 

pece_annotation_1480271412

Sara.Till

Emergency response itself is not particularly addressed; the article, instead, focuses on the humanitarian efforts that typically spawn from multi-week and month long conflicts. These are not necessarily the first-line individuals, but rather the workers (such as MSF) which come in to provide aid in the middle, late, or final stages of a conflict. The report delves into the responsibilities and hurdles of dealing with sexual violence in humanitarian efforts, which includes both emergent and non-emergent care.  

pece_annotation_1473115635

Sara.Till

1) Current INPO activities and chain of command, an organization that seems to be morphing from a quiet regulator of US nuclear industry to a proponent for international organization.

2) Further research into Three Mile Island incident, which is widely recognized as being a significantly smaller nuclear emergency. Yet, the aftermath of the incident highlighted tensions between public information, environmental concerns, and the need for more nuclear regulation.

3) France is noted by Dr. Schmid as being an international leader in nuclear power, a major surprise to me. I chose to explore this topic more, to see whether this has had any impact on French culture and environmental regulation.

pece_annotation_1480889790

Sara.Till

This article examines the gaps in research concerning health care workers in "complex security environments". These work areas contain some sort of conflict, poverty or environmental issues, particularly those that are humanitarian or crisis settings, and are characterized by civil unrest. This, in turn, leads to an involvement of aid personnel-- this report primarily focuses on violence towards health care workers within these settings and the lack of information on this issue. It pays particular attention to discrepancies between peer-reviewed, academic research and general media commentary or articles.  

pece_annotation_1473631281

Sara.Till

The report includes almost four pages of reference materials. These mostly include other journal articles or medical reports. The report, for the most part, seems to be grounded in a significant amount of medical and sociological studies and journal articles. However, there are a few government agency reports, including a National Health Institute report. 

pece_annotation_1474767223

Sara.Till

Many of the sources cited in the bibliography seem to be from various news sources. This includes New York Times, New York Daily Tribune, Chicago Daily Tribune, and Chicago Chronicle, to name a few. There are also several historical reports or accounts of the events described by Dr. Knowles. This indicates a focus on primary literature and sources when describing the historical disasters. There also appear to be several transcripts of federal agency or committee interactions and reports. 

pece_annotation_1476026860

Sara.Till

The web platform appears to be a space to compile stories and information from Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy. The primary goal seems to be informing the public about the hurricanes, specifically the aftermath in the days and months following the flooding. It serves as a method of remembrance for what occurred (the flooding, death toll, lack of appropriate and timely response, the struggles of survivors) and as a way to warn that these problems will continue to occur in the future. In the last few days, Hurricane Matthew ravaged the Caribbean, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. It will take weeks to return power to all who have lost it, and exact damage tolls will take months to compile. Although each time, with each pass of destruction, our responses seem to be improving, the disasters continue to accumulate-- despite warnings such as this site.