Turks and Caicos First Responders receive training in Psychological First Aid

#TurksandCaicos, October 23, 2017 – Providenciales – Disasters such as hurricanes can have serious mental health consequences which can take the form of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Acute Stress, Grief or Depression.   First Responders in particular, typically operate on the front lines and often work under severely stressful conditions during disasters.

To assist the country in providing mental health support to affected communities, the Ministry of Health, Agriculture and Human Services (MHAHS) along with the Department of Mental Health and Substance Dependence, welcomes Dr Claudina Cayetano, Mental Health Regional Advisor of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) in Washington DC.   Dr. Cayetano has extensive experience assisting countries in developing strategies to improve national emergency responses and will be conducting Psychological First Aid training with first responders and other health professionals starting today October 25^th – 26^th.

This training is designed to increase competence and skills necessary to improve the mental health of adults and children who may be struggling to cope after a natural disaster.   Participants of this training include Emergency Health Responders, Mental Health Department, Primary Health Care, TCI Red Cross and 911 Call Centre.

The Ministry of Health, Agriculture and Human Services is grateful to PAHO for its offer to assist, and sees this as a great opportunity to support and further strengthen TCI’s mental health services within the national emergency response.