Family therapists in trauma‐response teams: bringing systems thinking into interdisciplinary fieldwork

Abstract

Attention to the mental health facets of disaster‐preparedness and trauma‐response teams has increased considerably over the past decade. As family therapists take part in these efforts, they bring with them a worldview that adds valuable contributions to the nature in which fieldwork is conducted and the manners in which interdisciplinary teams function on the ground. In this article, we present how systems thinking sensitizes trauma workers to a variety of clinical presentations and biopsychosocial complexities inherent in this work. We describe common clinical‐ and practice‐related challenges, alongside practical strategies for effectively dealing with these challenges. We draw upon our experiences as family therapists trained in the field of trauma, and our work as field responders, supervisors and team leaders across a variety of local and large‐scale disaster events and contexts.

The WPA- Lancet Psychiatry Commission on the Future of Psychiatry

“…Increasing attention is paid to the role of these factors in the development and maintenance of a productive therapeutic alliance. 11,17 As an individual, the physician absorbs the general principles and particular features of the culture of medicine as practised in their location and filtered through their own cultural background. The patie t s ultu al a kg ou d i gs ith it o eptio s of t ust, espe t fo autho it figu es, dignity, self-image, self-esteem, and family-nourished beliefs and attitudes that the physician needs to appreciate to develop a positive and productive therapeutic alliance.…”

The role of natural disaster in individual and relational adjustment in Sri Lankan mothers following the 2004 tsunami

“…One of the purposes of the present study was to pinpoint important information that would inform mental health intervention with mothers in disaster contexts. In line with the emphasis on mobilising resources in a systemic way, Wells (2006), Landau, Mittal, and Wieling (2008), and Mendenhall and Berge (2010) discussed the importance of treating trauma using a systemic and contextualised lens. Wells (2006) indicated that treating a family system as a whole is important because trauma faced by one family member will surely reverberate through the system.…”

Extreme Traumatization in Chile: the Experience and Treatment of Families

“…Family therapy is relatively new in the field of traumatology, which has previously focused more extensively on individual responses (Mendenhall and Berge, 2010). However, the family plays a powerful role in providing strength and resilience in responding to crises such as trauma (Walsh, 1998).…”

“…This can be accomplished by identifying individual strengths and examples of resilience in family members and highlighting them as beacons of success (Boss et al, 2003), which can foster a climate in which hope can be stimulated that is essential for recovery (Walsh, 2007). Multi-systemic approaches to working with families and communities after traumatic events are now being advocated (Mendenhall and Berge, 2010;Walsh, 2007). As with any victim, ways of empowerment must be found.…”

“…It is also important to make some sense of the experience of trauma. Ways must be found to create new meaning so that clients may increase their sense of hope or be able to move beyond the level of mere survival (Mendenhall and Berge, 2010). Finding meaning is a way of contextualizing family members' distress (Walsh, 2007).…”