Trained Volunteer-Delivered Mental Health Support To Those Bereaved By Asian Tsunami — An Evaluation

Bibliographic Data

ID19273020
AuthorsLakshmi Vijayakumar (0000-0003-2471-9004, Voluntary Health Services Hospital), M Suresh Kumar (0000-0002-4821-9218, National Institute of Epidemiology, corresponding author)
Year2008
Volume54
Issue4
Pages293-302
Publication date2008-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Social Psychiatry (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0020-7640 • E-ISSN: 1741-2854
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0020764008090283
PMID18720890
OpenAlexW2076124618
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited27

Introduction: While mental health consequences following the Asian December 2004 tsunami have been studied, its impact on the survivors who lost close family members deserves attention. We investigated the usefulness of trained volunteer-delivered mental health support for the bereaved persons. Method: Non-randomized control design involving all adults aged 18 years or above who lost at least one close family member during tsunami from two geographically different coastal areas in Chennai, India. From the intervention and control sites, 45 and 57 participants were recruited respectively for the study. One year after baseline assessment, all 102 participants in intervention and control sites were interviewed. Results: Participants receiving interventions on a consistent basis from trained volunteers were less likely to report depressive symptoms and general psychological distress compared with participants who did not receive the above intervention. Regression analysis for predicting the effect of intervention on the difference between the baseline and follow-up in BDI as well as GHQ scores, found a significant association between intervention and the improvement in BDI (adjusted β ( SE): —0.53 (2.44); p = 0.000) and GHQ (adjusted β ( SE): —0.52 (1.81); p = 0.001) scores. Suicidal attempts were also significantly less in the intervention group (FET p = 0.02). Conclusion: In settings where mental health professionals are limited in number, trained lay volunteers can offer empathetic listening, support and referrals that can be potentially beneficial

Distress · General Health Questionnaire · Intervention (counseling) · Medical emergency · Mental health · Poison control · Psychiatry · Psychological intervention · Suicide prevention · Volunteer · Clinical Psychology · Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health · Medicine · Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research · Psychology · Suicide and Self-Harm Studies