OVERVIEW


A disaster is a complicated event affecting numerous connections, intersections, links, and systems of people, places, things and ideas. Disasters produce changes in human emotions that are both predictable and unpredictable. The regular ways of relating do not work during or immediately following a disaster. Normal cues are missing, images are distorted, and normal emotions and thoughts are temporarily incongruent. Mental health professionals who have been specially trained in disaster management know the unique needs of people in these distorted experiences.

Managers need to have at least a basic understanding of disaster exercises, tools, practices, procedures, and resources because they may be the only people available that the staff trusts. If your staff does not trust you before a disaster, a disaster will not increase their sense of safety. If the manager is clueless and unprepared for a disaster, or has no concept about the effects of disaster on human emotions, chaos can increase and escalate the emotional consequences.

After a catastrophic event, it is often the quiet, centered, and calm voice during the event that a victim remembers. A calm voice of compassion that is resonating with reason and security is the loudest guiding force when madness is swirling noisily about, chaos is ripping apart the fabric of the known, and cacophony is jumbling up signals and signs that have before this moment made sense. Imagine for a moment the stairwells in the World Trace Center building during the earliest morning evacuations. People unsure of the situation quietly and quickly followed well-practiced procedures guided by managers reminding them of the drills they have done before. Now imagine a firefighter calling a child out from under his hiding place in a burning home. As the firefighter manages strong inner emotional content, the child hears a voice of authority, calm, and direction. Managing during a disaster is not about controlling the disaster; it is about managing the emotions of the moment. Disasters have a beginning, middle, and an end. Each stage is managed a bit differently. In addition, there is a pre-disaster phase where the real planning is formulated and rehearsed.




Emotional Terrors in the Workplace. Protecting Your Business' Bottom Line. Emotional Continuity Management in the Workplace
Emotional Terrors in the Workplace: Protecting Your Business Bottom Line - Emotional Continuity Management in the Workplace
ISBN: B0019KYUXS
EAN: N/A
Year: 2003
Pages: 228

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