Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration

On this page the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Disaster Technical Assistance Center (DTAC) presents information on disaster behavioral health (DBH) online trainings (web-based courses), field events (DBH conferences, including meetings, workshops, and conventions), and webcasts (SAMHSA DTAC and non-SAMHSA DATC media presentations on DBH topics). If you would like to add an event to our Education and Training listing, please contact SAMHSA DTAC.

• Webcasts
• Online Training Sites
• Field Events

Webcasts

*New* Deployment Supports for Disaster Behavioral Health Responders Podcast
The goal of this 30-minute podcast is to prepare disaster behavioral health (DBH) responders and their family members for deployment by reviewing pre- and post-deployment guidelines and ways to prepare oneself and one's family members for the stress of deployment and reintegration into regular work and family life. This podcast aims to accomplish the following:

• Increase awareness of the unique issues DBH responders face, especially with numerous or long-term assignments.
• Provide pre-deployment guidelines to assist DBH responders and their family members as they prepare for deployment.
• Assist with the DBH responder and family members by providing post-deployment guidelines and practices that enable reintegration with family members and routine employment.

The featured speaker is April Naturale, Ph.D., of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Disaster Technical Assistance Center (DTAC). Dr. Naturale is a traumatic stress specialist with a 25-year history in health/mental health administration. She directed New York’s disaster mental health response following the terrorist attacks of 9/11, and spent several years in the Gulf Coast after the large-scale hurricanes that devastated the area.

SAMHSA DTAC encourages participation by behavioral health, public health, and other professionals involved in emergency management/disaster response.

If you have questions or need additional information, please contact Lori McGee at 240-515-8414 or Lori.McGee@icfi.com. Please send feedback regarding this podcast or suggestions for future podcasts or webinars to dtac@samsha.hhs.gov.

View archived podcasts.

*NEW* Cultural Awareness: Children and Youth in Disasters Podcast
The goal of this 60-minute podcast is to assist disaster behavioral health responders in providing culturally aware and appropriate disaster behavioral health services for children, youth, and families impacted by natural and human-caused disasters. The podcast aims to accomplish the following:

• Define cultural awareness
• Demonstrate the importance of cultural awareness in disaster services, particularly with children and youth
• Identify common reactions of children to disaster and trauma
• Present helpful approaches to working with children impacted by a disaster

Featured speakers include April Naturale, Ph.D., of SAMHSA DTAC and Russell T. Jones, Ph.D., of Virginia Tech University. Dr. Naturale is a traumatic stress specialist with a 25-year history in health/mental health administration. Dr. Jones is a Professor of Psychology at Virginia Tech University and a clinical psychologist who specializes in trauma psychology in the areas of natural and technological disasters as well as interpersonal violence.

SAMHSA DTAC encourages participation by behavioral health, public health, and other professionals involved in emergency management/disaster response activities who are interested in learning more about working with children and youth following a disaster or need a refresher about the disaster response issues specific to this population. View archived podcasts.

*NEW* Self-Care for Disaster Behavioral Health Responders Podcast
SAMHSA Disaster Technical Assistance Center (DTAC) is pleased to present the Self-Care for Disaster Behavioral Health Responders podcast. The goal of this 60-minute podcast is to provide information, best practices, and tools that enable disaster behavioral health (DBH) responders and supervisors to identify and effectively manage stress and secondary traumatic stress through workplace structures and self-care practices. The podcast will do all of the following:

• Define the stressors unique to DBH responders, including secondary traumatic stress
• Present best practices in self-care for DBH responders
• Provide tools that can be used to promote self-care
• Identify supports that can be provided by supervisors and management to assist DBH responders

Featured speakers include April Naturale, Ph.D., of SAMHSA DTAC and Jeannette David, Georgia Disaster Behavioral Health Coordinator.

SAMHSA DTAC encourages participation by behavioral health, public health, and other professionals involved in emergency management/disaster response and interested in learning more about self-care best practices. View archived podcasts.

Promising Practices in Disaster Behavioral Health Planning Webinar Series
From June to August 2011, SAMHSA DTAC held the Promising Practices in Disaster Behavioral Health Planning webinar series that consisted of nine webinars addressing promising practices in integrated mental health and substance abuse DBH planning. These webinars are meant to assist State and Territory disaster behavioral health coordinators, disaster mental health coordinators, and disaster substance abuse coordinators, as well as emergency management/behavioral health coordinators for Tribes, with the development and implementation of their DBH plans. The webinars have been recorded and are currently available for viewing. View archived Promising Practices webinars.

SAMHSA DTAC encourages all States, Territories, and Tribes to view the recorded webinars. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Terri Spear (Emergency Coordinator, SAMHSA/Office of Policy, Planning and Innovation/Division of Policy Innovation) at 240-276-2244 or terri.spear@samhsa.hhs.gov or Dr. Amy Mack (SAMHSA DTAC Project Director) at 240-744-7090 or amy.mack@icfi.com.

Building Awareness of Disaster Behavioral Health Webinar Series
In July and August 2011, SAMHSA DTAC held the Building Awareness of Disaster Behavioral Health webinar series to educate participants about the mental health, substance abuse, and stress management needs of people who have been exposed to human-caused, natural, or technological disasters. The webinars also help to build awareness about preparedness and response efforts in this area. The content of the webinars can be utilized by mental and non-mental health professionals who are involved in emergency management/disaster response and interested in learning more about mental health and substance abuse issues. The webinars featured nationally known mental health and substance abuse experts, as well as representatives from the fields of public health and emergency management. The webinars have been recorded and are currently available for viewing. View archived Building Awareness webinars.

Non-SAMHSA DTAC Webcasts

Topic	Date / Time Aired
Cultural Competency and Disaster Mental Health According to its website, this podcast features topics in "disaster mental health, medical interpreter preparedness, cultural competency, and the role of culture following a disaster." This webcast has been archived at http://www.emprints.hawaii.edu/training/course.aspx?ID=46&cat=3.	January 16, 2008
Disaster Mental Health Counseling Podcast This podcast includes an interview with a professor and creator of a curriculum in disaster mental health counseling. The interview covers advocacy and social justice issues involved in disaster mental health counseling. It also highlights the need for more cultural competence, and more extensive disaster counseling training, for all counselors. This webcast has been archived at http://education.ufl.edu/disaster-mental-health-counseling/sample-page/dissemination/.	Date and time unknown
Safe Schools: Crisis Intervention; How to Support People Coping with Loss This webcast provides strategies to help students cope with loss, and a debriefing process for parents and teachers to follow with students who are heavily affected by loss. This webcast has been archived at http://dpimedia.wi.gov/main/SilverlightPlayer/Default.aspx?peid=5c21a7b1de814d7cb20c47ae459e8bfd.	March 16, 2010
Safe Schools: Behavioral Health Recovery After Crisis Situations This webcast presents key concepts in children’s reactions to community trauma, a school's role in disaster recovery, and information about the Project Recovery Crisis Counseling Assistance and Training Program in response to the Wisconsin floods. This webcast has been archived at http://dpimedia.wi.gov/main/Viewer/?peid=b368f12cf18f4cfc9ee2b279d05f17ff.	December 16, 2008
State of All Hazards Preparedness for Children: Partnerships and Models for Merging Emergency Department and Disaster Preparedness Efforts Nationwide This webcast by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau within the Health Resources and Services Administration features resources and tools for pediatric disaster planning, lessons learned from the H1N1 pandemic, and perspectives from national stakeholders and partners in planning. This webcast has been archived at http://www.mchcom.com/archivedWebcastDetail.asp?id=222.	March 24, 2010
Stress Management for Emergency Responders—What Agencies Can Do This podcast provides information on stress management for individuals, teams, and agencies working in crisis settings. The series identifies ways to reduce stress and its negative impacts on individual staff members and the agency as a whole. This webcast has been archived at http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10615.	January 21, 2009

Online Training Sites

Early Responders Distance Learning Center
The Early Responders Distance Learning Center created and administers accredited courses for the emergency response community on preparing and responding to terrorist incidents with a specialized focus on psychological consequences.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Online Courses
FEMA offers free independent study courses that can be completed for continuing education units. Courses cover topics such as emergency preparedness, developing and managing volunteers, and the Incident Command System.

John Hopkins Public Health Preparedness Programs: Mental Health Preparedness Trainings
The John Hopkins Preparedness and Emergency Response Learning Center has developed a variety of mental health preparedness trainings that are available online:

• Disaster Mental Health Intervention
• Disaster Mental Health Planning
• Introduction to Mental Health and Disaster Preparedness
• Mental Health Consequences of Disaster
• Psychological First Aid Competencies for Public Health Workers
• Psychology and Crisis Response
• Psychology of Terrorism
• Roots of Terrorism
• Self-Care

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) Psychological First Aid (PFA) Online Course
The NCTSN Learning Center is an online training center geared toward professionals and families seeking to learn more about child traumatic stress. Many resources specifically focus on disaster-related trauma and grief. The NCTSN Learning Center also features the PFA 6-hour interactive course in which the student plays the role of a provider working in a scene after a disaster. According to the online course description, “This professionally narrated course is for individuals who are new to disaster response and want to learn the core goals of PFA, as well as for seasoned practitioners who want a review. It features innovative activities, video demonstrations, and mentor tips from the nation’s trauma experts and survivors. PFA Online also offers a Learning Community where participants can share experiences of using PFA in the field, receive guidance during times of disaster, and obtain additional resources and training.”

Field Events

National Emergency Management Association 2012 Emergency Management Policy & Leadership Forum
http://www.nemaweb.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=96&Itemid=211
October 5–9, 2012; TBD
The purpose of this conference is to provide a forum where experts and professionals in emergency management can discuss concerns in their field, policy development, and legislative issues.

Dynamics of Preparedness Conference
https://midas.pitt.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=269&Itemid=474
October 22–24, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA
The Dynamics of Preparedness Conference will provide a forum for researchers in many fields to discuss the future of research on preparedness for emergencies within public health systems.

International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM)-USA 60th Annual Conference
http://www.iaem.com/events/annual/intro.htm
October 26–November 1, 2012; Orlando, FL
The IAEM-USA Annual Conference will provide training workshops and breakout sessions on the conference theme "Resiliency: Building a Better Tomorrow" and will focus on the following topics:

• Long-term recovery and mitigation
• Mission continuity
• Emerging technologies
• Case studies
• Partners in practice—emergency management community

American Public Health Association 140th Annual Meeting and Exposition
http://www.apha.org/meetings/AnnualMeeting/
October 27–31; San Francisco, CA
The purpose of this conference is to unite the public health community in order to enhance their knowledge and support exchange of information on best practices, latest research, and new trends in public health.

Global Conference on Disaster Management
http://www.disasterconference.org/index.php/conferences
November 8, 2012; Los Angeles, CA
This conference will provide a forum on disaster management research; disaster preparedness; business continuity; emergency management, communications, and response; risk management; security; information technology; and human resources, environmental services, community planning, and the organizations that supply and serve these professions.

Disaster Management Conference 2012
http://www.gov.mb.ca/emo/general/conference/index.html
November 7–9, 2012; Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
The purpose of this conference is to provide a forum for emergency preparedness planners, health professionals, first responders, elected officials, educators, and policymakers to share experiences, showcase technologies, and provide information on and solutions to problems in emergency management.

The International Disaster Conference and Exposition
http://www.internationaldisasterconference.com/
January 8–10, 2013; New Orleans, LA
The purpose of this conference is to bring together professionals in public and private sectors to discuss disaster recovery, lessons learned from responding to disasters, and best practices.

12th World Congress on Stress, Trauma, and Coping
http://www.icisf.org/world-congress/12th-world-congress
February 19–24, 2013; Baltimore, MD
The purpose of this conference is to give those who provide crisis and disaster mental health services an opportunity to discuss research on and innovations in crisis intervention, as well as crisis intervention in the following contexts: military, disaster response, emergency services, health care, work with special populations, and schools.

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Last updated 09/05/2012