Symptomatology attributable to psychological exposure to a chemical incident: a natural experiment

Gallacher, John; Bronstering, Karin; Palmer, S.R.; Fone, David Lawrence; Lyons, Ronan A

doi:10.1136/jech.2006.046987

Cited by 48 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Those most vulnerable were groups with significant exposure and dependence on fishing and oil work for subsistence [3]. In an earlier study of the Sea Empress Oil Spill in Wales [4], the social and economic consequences following the spill resulted in increased concerns about health, finances, and perceived environmental risk; all of these factors resulted in increases in mental health symptoms [5]. Greater exposure resulting in increased behavioral health symptoms was also evident in the research done after the 2002 Prestige Oil Spill in Spain [6,7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Longer-Term Mental and Behavioral Health Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Gulf Oil Spill

Hansel

Osofsky

et al. 2015

JMSE

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Abstract:Mental health issues are a significant concern after technological disasters such as the 2010 Gulf Oil Spill; however, there is limited knowledge about the long-term effects of oil spills. The study was part of a larger research effort to improve understanding of the mental and behavioral health effects of the Deepwater Horizon Gulf Oil Spill. Data were collected immediately following the spill and the same individuals were resampled again after the second anniversary (n = 314). The results show that mental health symptoms of depression, serious mental illness and posttraumatic stress have not statistically decreased, and anxiety symptoms were statistically equivalent to immediate symptoms. Results also showed that the greatest effect on anxiety is related to the extent of disruption to participants' lives, work, family, and social engagement. This study supports lessons learned following the Exxon Valdez spill suggesting that mental health effects are long term and recovery is slow. Elevated symptoms indicate the continued need for mental health services, especially for individuals with high levels of disruption resulting in increased anxiety. Findings also suggest that the longer-term recovery trajectories following the Deepwater Horizon Gulf Oil Spill do not fall within traditional disaster recovery timelines.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Longer-Term Mental and Behavioral Health Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Gulf Oil Spill

Hansel

Osofsky

et al. 2015

JMSE

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“…Indirect exposure may occur through daily media reports about the spill, providing clean‐up and other assistance to communities in oiled areas, and economic hardship as fisheries close and the seafood processing and tourism sectors are negatively affected. As shown in other oil spills (e.g., Gallacher, Bronstering, Palmer, Fone, & Lyons, ; Gill et al., ; Lyons, Temple, Evans, Fone, & Palmer, ; Picou, Marshall, & Gill, ), oil exposure, per se, is not related to anxiety and depression. Rather, mental health symptoms relate to worries about health, household finances, community conflict, seafood safety, and perceived environmental risk.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 65%

Persistent Risk‐Related Worry as a Function of Recalled Exposure to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Prior Trauma

et al. 2019

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Large oil spills are disasters associated with psychological effects for exposed communities. The amount of worry that individuals experience after a disaster may be influenced by many factors, such as the type and extent of exposure to disaster impacts, prior trauma, and sociodemographic characteristics. This study examined the nature and predictors of worry about ongoing impacts of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DH) oil spill reported by Gulf of Mexico coastal residents. A random sample of 2,520 adult residents of Gulf of Mexico coastal counties were administered a telephone survey in 2016, including items about persistent worry and exposure to DH impacts, prior trauma, residence at the time of the spill, and sociodemographic characteristics. Respondents varied in the amount of worry they reported about ongoing health, social, and economic impacts. Controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, higher exposure to the DH oil spill was related to higher levels of worry about ongoing impacts, with past traumatic events related specifically to worry about health impacts. Unexpectedly, those who moved into the region after the spill showed similar levels of worry to residents exposed to the spill, and higher levels than residents who did not recall being exposed to the DH oil spill. This study highlights the impact of the DH oil spill on coastal residents many years after the DH disaster. The findings underscore the need to examine multiple pathways by which individuals experience disasters and for risk researchers to close knowledge gaps about long‐term impacts of oil spills within a multi‐dimensional framework.

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“…Countries still inadequately prepared for the IHR should note that chemical events can cause major loss of life, long-term disability, 5 and, in major ways, disrupt psycho-social health and well-being of large populations 73 as well as the economy 51 . Countries should therefore assess urgently their capabilities for dealing with chemical events against IPCS guidelines 6 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Building national public health capacity for managing chemical events: A case study of the development of health protection services in the United Kingdom

Palmer

Coleman

2013

J Public Health Pol

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The revised International Health Regulations (2005) require that countries develop plans for chemical threats. In 2012, the World Health Assembly reported that most countries had not yet achieved ‘adequate capacity'. We review the evolution of chemical hazards services in the United Kingdom, the result of 15 years of grass-roots pressure and an accumulating weight of chemical incidents that eventually convinced the UK Department of Health of the need for a new national public health function, culminating, in 2003, in the creation of the Chemical Hazards Division of the new Health Protection Agency. Ten years later, public health services are again being radically reorganized with the creation of Public Health England, potentially destabilizing health protection arrangements and creating confusion among roles in managing chemical emergencies. Incorporating health protection into a broader public health organization, however, offers a new opportunity to broaden the scope of health protection services to embrace prevention of non-infectious environmental diseases.

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Symptomatology attributable to psychological exposure to a chemical incident: a natural experiment

Cited by 48 publications

References 26 publications

Longer-Term Mental and Behavioral Health Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Gulf Oil Spill

Longer-Term Mental and Behavioral Health Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Gulf Oil Spill

Persistent Risk‐Related Worry as a Function of Recalled Exposure to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Prior Trauma

Building national public health capacity for managing chemical events: A case study of the development of health protection services in the United Kingdom

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