Loss
& Grief
Helping Someone who is grieving
Relevant Publications
Where can victims
of the fires get help?
Statement from the NALAG (NSW) President
We at NALAG (NSW) wish to send our love and support to all those affected by the Victorian bushfires. We have watched the horror unfold and like our fellow Australians have felt great sadness and shock at the devastation and human suffering that so many individuals and communities are experiencing. To our colleagues and the many volunteers who are part of the emergency disaster and recovery response, we wish to acknowledge their extraordinary contribution and to say we have the utmost respect and regard for their selfless work and acts of compassion.
We have heard and seen unbelievable stories of loss, trauma, survival and resilience. We have also been witness to such wonderful acts of kindness, generosity and compassion. We are well aware that the impact of these fires will resonate for years to come and for those directly impacted for a lifetime.
There will be many and varied reactions and assistance will need to be easily accessible and flexible for the long-term. We have learnt much from other disasters over time and our colleagues are acting on what has been learnt as I write. Each disaster brings with it different suffering and challenges and so it is with these life shattering fires.
One of the important lessons from other disasters (including the experiences from 9/11) is that the personal support, counselling response, needs to be well coordinated . Our colleagues in Victoria and at a National level have excellent community emergency and recovery plans in place and are consulting with and assisted by some of the best clinicians and experts in psychological trauma/disaster/ grief response within Australia.
I have been contacted by many NSW NALAG members and community colleagues who wish to offer assistance. It is heartening to receive such offers of support.
Given the generous offers of support I do need to ask members to heed the messages from the Victorian government disaster authorities, backed by the disaster mental health response experts, that counsellors, psychologists and other health and mental health workers and volunteers resist the urge to independently travel to those parts of Victoria devastated by the bushfires to conduct counselling or debriefing for survivors or emergency workers. The convergence of well meaning but uninvited counsellors and volunteers at disaster sites in the past has negatively impacted on community recovery and the research has also indicated that “counselling” and debriefing can actually make recovery more difficult. Post-disaster settings are not clinical settings.
If you wish to offer your services then you are asked to register if you are a psychologist with the APS on:
disasterregister@psychology.org.au.
Alternatively if you have expertise and training in disaster mental health support you can register with The Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement (ACGB) based in Victoria
The ACGB Centre is collating the many generous offers of support which have been made by bereavement practitioners who have expressed a willingness to provide assistance. At this stage they are recording details on the availability and expertise of practitioners which will be activated when a formal request is made. This is likely to be a number of weeks from now. You can register your interest by email. Please provide a telephone number in your email so that ACGB staff can make contact with you. Interested bereavement counsellors are requested to contact our Bereavement Counselling and Support Service by email at: counselling@grief.org.au
As NALAG members will be aware those directly affected will be in need of Psychological First Aid (PFA) not in depth counselling or forcing individuals to talk if they don’t want to. The primary goals of PFA are to assist with restoring a sense of safety, community connectedness, provision of basic needs and emergency medical attention, clear and accurate information about the continuing emergency, updates on the whereabouts of family and friends, those missing and updates on what has happened to property, pets and live stock, assistance in reuniting with loved ones and getting information out to family and friends not within the disaster zone. The role also involves identifying those at risk and in need of more specialized services. Often the work is that of an advocate, assisting with connection to services and problem solving those issues that may be causing frustration or distress. Many survivors from previous disasters have said that what helped was having someone to simply stay with them, look out for them or gently check if they needed anything, the power of “the kindness of strangers”.
Our thoughts and hearts are with those affected by the bushfires in Victoria.
Julie Dunsmore AM MAPS,
President National Association for Loss and Grief (NSW)
Someone who has experienced a loss can:
·
Feel like being lost in a maze of conflicting emotions.·
Have a sense of losing control·
Be CHAOTIC
This is NORMAL following significant loss. Knowing the experience is NORMAL may not take away the pain, but will increase understanding of what is happening. It is important to know you will recover, that it will get better.
Helping Someone Who is Grieving
Be a good listener
Grieving people need to talk about their loss,
acknowledge that they have been through a
difficult experience. You can’t fix their grief but you can be there, hear their story, and share their journey.
Be a shoulder to cry on
Allow them to cry with you, crying helps the
release of emotions and this helps with healing.
Be in touch with them
Drop in, call on the telephone and say “I was thinking of you today” write a letter, send an email, remember special days like Christmas, birthdays and anniversaries.
When someone has experienced a loss, there will be big and small adjustments to be made in their lives. These could bring uncertainty, frustration, fear, sadness and change as each new day comes along. Grief is about adapting to change in life, thoughts, hopes, beliefs and the future.
Be a friend
Often being there is all that is needed to support someone who is grieving.
(Adapted from the writings of Doris Zagdanski)
To download a printable version of this information please click here.
Other publications that may be relevant:
Brochures
Articles
Where can victims of Victoria's bushfires get help?
The Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement
(ACGB) based in Victoria
has established a dedicated web page which provides information on grief and bereavement organisations who can provide assistance; a number of resources for both the general public and practitioners and finally details of a number of websites which provide a range of support materials. This page will be regularly updated as new information and resources become available. This can be accessed at: Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement
The Australian Psychological
Society
If you are a psychologist and have particular expertise that you wish to offer to the Victorian authorities the APS has put out the following information: see http://www.psychology.org.au.
The APS is responding to the situation in a number of ways, including:
Drafting guidelines for APS members wanting to contribute to the bushfire response.
Working with authorities to coordinate the provision of psychological assistance as required. Interested psychologists are requested to contact the APS at disasterregister@psychology.org.au.
Liaising with government to coordinate activities and to promote evidence-based practice that suggests that the real need for specific psychological support is likely to come into play some weeks after the disaster event. In the meantime, current best practice recommends the provision of psychological first aid, which is aptly provided by disaster relief workers or mental health workers who provide early assistance to people affected by disasters or emergencies.
Developing guidelines for emergency services and local authorities regarding appropriate responses in the initial phase after the bushfire.
Drafting guidelines for GPs on working with people affected by the bushfires in liaison with the Commonwealth National Disaster Response Committee.
Distributing our existing bushfire and disaster response material via not only the APS but also the Australian General Practice Network, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine.
A media release which provides advice on psychological distress arising from these events.
Providing a new section on the website with updates and resources see http://www.psychology.org.au.
Nurse-On-Call Bushfire Health and
Counselling Line 1300 60 60 24
This service will provide immediate, round-the-clock counselling to Victorians who have lost their homes and loved ones, and emergency service workers, volunteers and service providers battling the blazes and caring for victims.
People can call Nurse-On-Call on 1300 60 60 24 and speak firstly to a registered nurse who can provide general health advice. The nurse can then transfer the caller to the bushfire support counsellors who are trained mental health professionals such as psychologists, mental health nurses, social workers and occupational therapists if required.
Lifeline Information Service – 131 114o
o
Parentline – 132 289o
Kids Help Line – 1800 551 800o
Griefline – 03 9596 7799; Suicide Line – 1300 651 251o
Rural Support Line – 1300 655 969o
Beyondblue – 1300 22 4636
Other Information
The
Victorian Bushfire Information Line 1800 240 667
To check for current fire activities go to the Country Fire Authority's website at www.cfa.vic.gov.au/incidents/incident_summary.htm. For more information visit the State Government of Victoria Department of Human Services website www.dhs.vic.gov.au
Emergency - financial assistance
Centrelink Phone 180 2211 or visit www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/emergency/vic_bushfires.html
Relief centres and finding friends and family
People should call the Red Cross on 1800 727 077 if they are unable to contact someone in the affected areas or if they want to know the location of a relief centre.
Insurance claims
Anyone having difficulty finding their insurance documents, or relatives and friends of people affected by the bushfires who aren't sure who their insurer is, can contact the Insurance Council of Australia on 1300 728 228.
RACV Insurance - 13 19 03
Suncorp - 13 11 55
Allianz - 13 1000
CommInsure - 13 24 23
Elders Insurance - 13 56 22
HBF - 1800 198 066
ING - 1300 550 194
QBE Insurance - 133 723
Westpac General Insurance - 1800 805 458
Australian Centre for Grief & Bereavement - www.grief.org.au
NALAG (VIC) - www.nalagvic.org.au
Australian Psychological Association - www.psychology.org.au
Emergency Management Australia - www.ema.gov.au
National Association for Loss And Grief (NSW) Inc. | ||
| Address: | Welchman Street, Dubbo NSW 2830 | |
| Correspondence: | Centre Coordinator, P.O. Box 379, Dubbo NSW 2830 | |
| Phone: | +61 (0)2 68829222 | |
| Email: | info@nalag.org.au | |
To contact the webmaster for this site please email webmaster@nalag.org.au