Fire fighters suffer long-term stress
NZPA-AAP Sydney More than one-fifth of the fire-fighters in the 1983 Ash Wednesday bushfires in South Australia still suffered from stress disorders caused by the disaster, a study has found.
The study showed that natural disasters could cause stress disorders with longlasting effects. The study, published in the “Medical Journal of Australia,” surveyed 459 fire-fighters exposed to the 1983 bushfires and found that 21 per cent continued to be adversely affected.
Dr Alexander McFarlane, a senior lecturer in psychiatry at Flinders University, discovered also that the level of psychological trauma suffered by some victims four months after the disaster remained almost unchanged at 29 months.
Such effects included impaired memory, loss of concentration, and “pyschic numbing,” which could cause detachment in close relationships. The study looked at the psychological impact of long-term post-traumatic stress caused by natural disasters.
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Press, 20 December 1986, Page 37
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143Fire fighters suffer long-term stress Press, 20 December 1986, Page 37
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