Posttraumatic stress disorder and identification in disaster workers.

Bibliography: p. 359

Reprinted from American journal of psychiatry; 1999; v. 156, no. 3; p. 353-359

Disaster workers who work with deceased victims are at increased risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Identification with the deceased has been proposed as one of the mechanisms in this stress-illness relationship. To examine this hypothesis, this study investigated three types of identification with the dead in a group of disaster workers: identification with the deceased as oneself, identification with the deceased as a friend, and identification with the deceased as a family member. Fifty-four volunteer disaster workers who worked with the dead following an explosion on the USS Iowa naval ship were assessed one, four, and thirteen months after the disaster. PTSD symptoms, intrusive and avoidant disaster-related symptoms, somatization and general distress, and health care utilization were assessed. Disaster workers who reported identification with the deceased as a friend were more likely than those who did not to have PTSD, more intrusive and avoidant symptoms, and greater levels of other posttraumatic symptoms including somatization. Disaster workers who reported identification with the deceased as a family member had greater intrusive symptoms one month after the disaster than those who did not. There were no differences between those who did and did not identify with the deceased as self. Health care utilization was not associated with identification. Identification with the deceased is a risk factor for PTSD and posttraumatic symptoms in disaster workers exposed to the dead. Identification with the dead as a friend is specifically associated with higher risk for these workers