[Durgical](https://durgical.com/en/) › [DurgiPedia](https://durgical.com/en/durgipedia/) › [Nursing](https://durgical.com/en/nursing/) › [Family and community nursing](https://durgical.com/en/nursing/areas/community/) › Psychological first aid after disasters, violence and crises # Psychological first aid after disasters, violence and crises - Safe practice Psychological first aid is humane, practical support right after a crisis: look for safety and needs, listen without pressure and link people to help. Updated Nov 13, 2026 ## Key points - Look: check safety, urgent basic needs and serious distress reactions. - Listen: approach respectfully, ask about needs and concerns, listen without pressure and help the person feel calm. - Link: help with basic needs and services, coping with problems, accurate information and contact with loved ones. - PFA is not debriefing: do not ask the person to tell the event in detail. - Need more than PFA first: serious injury, inability to care for self or children, risk of harming self or others. - Special attention: children (especially if separated), people with health conditions or disabilities, people at risk of discrimination or violence. ## What it is Psychological first aid (PFA) is a humane, supportive response to people who are suffering after a serious crisis event. WHO's guide for field workers organises it around three action principles, look, listen and link, after preparing by learning about the crisis, the services available and the safety situation. PFA is not professional counselling and not psychological debriefing: it does not ask people to recount or analyse the event, and it does not force help on those who do not want it. It aims at what helps long-term recovery: feeling safe, calm, connected and hopeful, having access to support and feeling able to help oneself. Any health worker, including nursing students under supervision, can provide it. People with life-threatening injuries, those who cannot care for themselves or their children, and those who may hurt themselves or others need more advanced help first. ## What it requires - Preparation: know what happened, which services exist and what the safety risks are. - Knowing one's limits and when to call for medical or specialised help. - Respect for the person's dignity, culture and decisions. - Self-care of the helper before, during and after. ## Components - Prepare. - Look. - Listen. - Link. - End the help well and look after oneself. ## How it is applied (and why) - Learn about the event, services and safety before going — preparation keeps the helper safe and useful. - Look at the scene: dangers, people with urgent needs and people in severe distress — safety and urgent needs come first. - Introduce yourself by name and organisation and ask if you can help — respect gives the person control. - Find a safe, quiet place, offer water and protect the person from onlookers and media — privacy protects dignity. - Ask what they need and what worries them most now — needs are asked about, not assumed. - Stay close, listen if they want to talk, and do not press for details — pressure to tell the story can harm. - If very distressed, speak calmly and help them notice their feet, breathing and surroundings — grounding helps them calm down. - Link them to basic services, accurate information and their loved ones — social support predicts better coping. - Say only what you know, follow up if you promise to, and say goodbye well — false reassurance destroys trust. ## In nursing practice - Do not leave a severely distressed person alone; keep them safe until help arrives. - Keep children with their caregivers and protect unaccompanied children. - Encourage healthy coping (rest, eating, contact with others) and discourage alcohol and drugs. - In recovery, watch for PTSD, substance use and suicide risk and refer per protocol. ## Common mistakes - Asking people to recount the event step by step (psychological debriefing is not recommended). - Giving false promises or made-up information. - Imposing one's own beliefs or interpretations of the crisis. - Forgetting one's own rest and support after the work. ## Test yourself Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it. ## What are the three action principles of PFA in the WHO guide? Look, listen and link, after preparing for the situation. ## Why is PFA not the same as psychological debriefing? Because PFA does not ask the person to recount or analyse the event in detail; debriefing, which does, is not recommended. ## Who needs more advanced help before PFA alone? People with serious, life-threatening injuries, those so upset they cannot care for themselves or their children, and those who may hurt themselves or others. ## What can a helper do for someone who feels unreal or disconnected after a crisis? Speak calmly and help them notice their feet on the floor, their breathing and non-distressing things around them. [Add to my cards (4)](https://durgical.app/estudiar/?add=/en/nursing/psychological-first-aid-after-disasters-violence-and-crises/) ## Elsewhere in DurgiPedia - [Crisis intervention and supportive psychotherapy](https://durgical.com/en/behavioral-science/crisis-intervention-and-supportive-psychotherapy/) - [Stress: the general adaptation syndrome and allostatic load](https://durgical.com/en/behavioral-science/stress-the-general-adaptation-syndrome-and-allostatic-load/) - [Coping and resilience](https://durgical.com/en/behavioral-science/coping-and-resilience/) ## Connections ## Related 3 - [Disasters and the nurse: risk reduction, preparedness, response and recovery (and shelters)](https://durgical.com/en/nursing/disasters-and-the-nurse-risk-reduction-preparedness-response-and-recovery/) - [Therapeutic communication: techniques and barriers](https://durgical.com/en/nursing/therapeutic-communication-techniques-and-barriers/) - [Supporting the family and grief](https://durgical.com/en/nursing/supporting-the-family-and-grief/) ## Related conditions 1 - [Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and acute stress disorder](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-and-acute-stress-disorder/) [← All of nursing](https://durgical.com/en/nursing/) Educational content for students; it does not replace your institution's protocols, supervised clinical training or a prescriber's order. Dose-calculation examples use made-up numbers: they are educational, not a clinical order. Sources: [Psychological first aid: guide for field workers](https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241548205) (World Health Organization, War Trauma Foundation and World Vision International, 2011); [Nursing: Mental Health and Community Concepts, 18.3 Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery (Open RN, CC BY 4.0)](https://med.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Nursing/Nursing%3A_Mental_Health_and_Community_Concepts_(OpenRN)/18%3A_Environmental_Health_and_Emergency_Preparedness/18.03%3A_Emergency_Preparedness_Response_and_Recovery) (Open Resources for Nursing (Open RN) / LibreTexts, 2022); [Nursing: Mental Health and Community Concepts, 18.4 Nurses' Roles in Emergency Response (Open RN, CC BY 4.0)](https://med.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Nursing/Nursing%3A_Mental_Health_and_Community_Concepts_(OpenRN)/18%3A_Environmental_Health_and_Emergency_Preparedness/18.04%3A_Nurses_Roles_in_Emergency_Response) (Open Resources for Nursing (Open RN) / LibreTexts, 2022). ## **Spotted a mistake?** We are always improving for the community. Tell us what is wrong and our team will review it. Report a mistake Representative model, for educational purposes only. --- Source: https://durgical.com/en/nursing/psychological-first-aid-after-disasters-violence-and-crises/ License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Cite as: DurgiPedia (durgical.com), https://durgical.com/en/nursing/psychological-first-aid-after-disasters-violence-and-crises/