Efficacy of Communication Techniques and Health Outcomes of Bushfire Smoke Exposure: A Scoping Review

Heaney, Emily; Hunter, L. C.; Clulow, Angus; Bowles, Devin C.; Vardoulakis, Sotiris

doi:10.3390/ijerph182010889

Cited by 18 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 72 publications

(478 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Feelings of frustration and confusion. Heaney, 2021 [ 52 ] To assess the current evidence regarding optimal public communication strategies used in smoke-related disaster scenarios and best practices to connect with and empower populations to avoid exposure and health consequences associated with bushfire smoke. Literature review Scoping review General psychosocial and mental health effects.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The mental health and well-being effects of wildfire smoke: a scoping review

Eisenman¹,

Galway

2022

BMC Public Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Smoke from wildfires is a growing public health risk due to the enormous amount of smoke-related pollution that is produced and can travel thousands of kilometers from its source. While many studies have documented the physical health harms of wildfire smoke, less is known about the effects on mental health and well-being. Understanding the effects of wildfire smoke on mental health and well-being is crucial as the world enters a time in which wildfire smoke events become more frequent and severe. We conducted a scoping review of the existing information on wildfire smoke’s impact on mental health and well-being and developed a model for understanding the pathways in which wildfire smoke may contribute to mental health distress. Methods We conducted searches using PubMed, Medline, Embase, Google, Scopus, and ProQuest for 1990–2022. These searches yielded 200 articles. Sixteen publications met inclusion criteria following screening and eligibility assessment. Three more publications from the bibliographies of these articles were included for a total of 19 publications. Results Our review suggests that exposure to wildfire smoke may have mental health impacts, particularly in episodes of chronic and persistent smoke events, but the evidence is inconsistent and limited. Qualitative studies disclose a wider range of impacts across multiple mental health and well-being domains. The potential pathways connecting wildfire smoke with mental health and well-being operate at multiple interacting levels including individual, social and community networks, living and working conditions, and ecological levels. Conclusions Priorities for future research include: 1) applying more rigorous methods; 2) differentiating between mental illness and emotional well-being; 3) studying chronic, persistent or repeated smoke events; 4) identifying the contextual factors that set the stage for mental health and well-being effects, and 5) identifying the causal processes that link wildfire smoke to mental health and well-being effects. The pathways model can serve as a basis for further research and knowledge synthesis on this topic. Also, it helps public health, community mental health, and emergency management practitioners mitigate the mental health and well-being harms of wildfire smoke.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Heaney, Vincent, and Reid reported on literature review processes related to wildfire smoke and mental health and being [ 9 , 46 , 52 ]. Heaney synthesized current evidence pertaining to optimal public communication strategies used in smoke-related disasters using a scoping review methodology [ 52 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The mental health and well-being effects of wildfire smoke: a scoping review

Eisenman¹,

Galway

2022

BMC Public Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Section: Summary Of Publications Using Qualitative Data Mixed-methods...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Heaney, Vincent, and Reid reported on literature review processes related to wild re smoke and mental health and being (16,39,45). Heaney synthesized current evidence pertaining to optimal public communication strategies used in smokerelated disasters using a scoping review methodology (45). The authors reviewed 67 articles that focused on health communication and/or adverse health effects of smoke exposure in the context of wild re (bush re) smoke events.…”

Section: Summary Of Publications Using Qualitative Data Mixed-methods...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Only 8 of 67 articles in the review made the connection between wild re smoke events and psychosocial and mental health effects speci cally. The authors emphasize that smoke exposure is usually associated with mild psychological distress, that isolation is a common precipitating factor, and that effective health communication may help reduce mental health consequences (45). They also highlight that "... it is di cult to differentiate the psychological impacts speci cally related to smoke exposure from other potentially traumatizing factors like forced evacuation from home, an approaching re front, or the loss of loved ones and belongings".…”

Section: Summary Of Publications Using Qualitative Data Mixed-methods...mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Mental Health and Well-being Effects of Wildfire Smoke: A Scoping Review

Eisenman

Galway

2022

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundSmoke from wildfires is a growing public health risk due to the enormous amount of smoke related pollution that is produced and can travel thousands of kilometers from its source. While many studies have documented the physical health harms of wildfire smoke, less is known about the effects on mental health and well-being. Understanding the effect of wildfire smoke on mental-health and well-being is crucial as the world enters a time in which wildfire smoke events can spread long distances past the immediate burn for prolonged periods of time. The aim of this scoping review is to review the existing information on wildfire smoke’s impact on mental health and well-being and to develop a model for understanding the pathways in which wildfire smoke may contribute to mental health distress. MethodsWe conducted searches using PubMed, Medline, Embase, Google, Scopus, and ProQuest for 1990-2022. These searches yielded 200 articles with 16 publications meeting inclusion criteria following screening and eligibility assessment and 3 more from the bibliographies of these articles were included for a total of 19 publication. ResultsOur review suggests that exposure to wildland smoke may have mental health impacts, particularly in episodes of chronic and persistent smoke events, but the evidence is inconsistent and limited. Qualitative studies disclose a wider range of impacts across multiple mental health and well-being domains. The potential pathways connecting wildfire smoke with mental health and well-being may operate at several levels including the physiological, physical, psychological, emotional, social, practical, and ecological. ConclusionsWe identify several priorities for future research: 1) applying more rigorous methods to generate more robust conclusions about the mental health and well-being impacts of wildfire smoke; 2) differentiating between mental illness or probable mental illness on the one hand and emotional well-being on the other; 3) identifying the contextual factors that set the stage for mental health and well-being effects, and; 4) identifying the causal processes that link wildfire smoke to mental health and well-being effects. The pathways model we provide can serve as a basis for further research and for mental-health and well-being protection interventions.

show abstract

Evaluating elements of risk communication in risk messaging from officials on Twitter in the 2021 Marshall fire

Vaughn

2024

Nat Hazards

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Marshall re in Boulder County, Colorado sparked and spread into nearby urban areas in an unusually fast timeframe. Without a widely used warning system to alert the public, o cials used social media as one warning information outlet to encourage rapid, large-scale evacuations. Tweets (N = 1,338) published by 109 media and government Twitter accounts on the day of the re were examined for risk messaging components and coded according to which components were included. The risk messaging components used were derived from the Protective Action Decision Model and the Extended Parallel Process Model. Tweets from the National Weather Service in Boulder were evaluated using recommendations from NOAA's Hazard Risk Communication guide. Some types of environmental cues improved several engagement metrics for tweets from media, and emergency managers and rst responders. Social cues only effected engagement for local media accounts, though there were mixed results depending on the variables included in the regression model. Inclusion of actionable information boosted engagement for government o cials, though this result also depended on which variables were included in the model. Inclusion of threat information improved some or all engagement metrics for journalists, local newspapers and non-traditional news websites, government, and emergency management accounts. The National Weather Service ful lled the eleven recommendations from NOAA's HRC guide that were used in this research, and the use of lively language, vivid images, empathy, and the "all-clear" were noted among the well-performing tweets. This study provides helpful information to those posting on social media in an o cial capacity during a wild re by examining how risk communication theory and recommendations performed in a real-world scenario.

show abstract

Efficacy of Communication Techniques and Health Outcomes of Bushfire Smoke Exposure: A Scoping Review

Cited by 18 publications

References 72 publications

The mental health and well-being effects of wildfire smoke: a scoping review

The mental health and well-being effects of wildfire smoke: a scoping review

The Mental Health and Well-being Effects of Wildfire Smoke: A Scoping Review

Evaluating elements of risk communication in risk messaging from officials on Twitter in the 2021 Marshall fire

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About