Long-term mental health effects of disasters

The long-term mental health consequences of disasters are varied - most people show tremendous resilience in the aftermath, however many will continue to experience high levels of stress, changes in mood, and anxiety. These mental health effects can last for months or years following a disaster, and are often related to someone’s experience in the post-disaster environment. A growing body of research has illustrated the long-term mental health effects following disasters, however, the evidence has not been well synthesized to inform policy and practice.

This study examined the long-term patterns of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety symptoms among communities affected by disasters and pandemics. Second, we determined the risk and protective factors associated with mental health outcomes over time.

A systematic review of the English, Japanese and Chinese language literature was conducted to assess longitudinal studies conducted one year or more after a disaster.

This study is a collaboration between Curtin University, the National Institute of Mental Health Japan, University of Melbourne, Hyogo Institute for Traumatic Stress, and Harvard University. The project is supported by the World Health Organization Centre for Health Development (WHO Kobe Centre - WKC:K19007).

Reference: Newnham, E.A., Mergelsberg, E.L.P., Chen, Y., Kim, Y., Gibbs, L., Dzidic, P., Ishida DaSilva, M., Chan, E.Y.Y., Shimomura, K., Narita, Z., Huang, Z., & Leaning, J. (2022). Long term mental health trajectories after disasters and pandemics: A multilingual systematic review of prevalence, risk and protective factors. Clinical Psychology Review, 97, 102203.