FEMA Director Paulison Responds to Criticism of Crisis Counseling Program
"Florida requested mental health outreach," South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 10/13/06
Release Date: October 13, 2006
Release Number: FNF-06-016
FEMA acknowledges it has made mistakes in response to the catastrophic hurricanes of recent years in Florida and the Gulf Coast. However, the attacks in your article ("Investigation Shows FEMA Spent Millions On Puppet Shows, Bingo, Yoga," Oct. 8, 2006) and Oct. 11 editorial about the Crisis Counseling Program are gratuitous FEMA-bashing -- nothing else.
After four hurricanes hit Florida in 2004 and following an influx of Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita evacuees from other Gulf Coast states, FEMA was there to help victims and the state rebuild. As part of its mission defined by Congress, FEMA has both the authority and responsibility to fund programs addressing the mental health impacts of a disaster. To that end, the state of Florida requested aid for a robust mental health outreach program to be overseen by the Department of Health and Human Services and operated by the state. Once again, as it has been since its inception, FEMA was there for the state of Florida.
During its 25 years of existence, the crisis counseling program has provided short-term mental health services to individuals and groups affected by large-scale disasters. The program serves people who have witnessed deaths, experienced serious physical injuries, been separated from family members, lost their homes and their jobs -- individuals and families whose lives have been turned upside down. Many are children traumatized by disaster or individuals already living with a disability, including, in numerous cases, mental illness.
The crisis counseling program works with these individuals and their families to: help them understand and assess their post-disaster lives; encourage the use of coping strategies; provide emotional support; and connect participants with necessary services. With the program's mission in mind, FEMA approved the state of Florida's request to fund mental health outreach efforts serving thousands of victims of the 2004 and 2005 hurricanes. It was clear that there would be significant mental health impacts stemming from those devastating storms.
Yet throughout the course of Sally Kestin's article and the newspaper's editorial, the writers relentlessly attack FEMA using handpicked quotes designed to undermine the agency, without acknowledging the human impact of these disasters. The coverage also fails to inform readers that the programs highlighted, such as the puppet shows, are merely outreach tools to connect with victims that wouldn't otherwise receive counseling.
Your coverage of this story is part of a longstanding pattern: When FEMA fails to fund a request, reporters and editorial writers blast the federal government for its lack of compassion. However, when FEMA spends money that is then used for purposes some may question, the chorus of criticism resounds again.
The mental health outreach program approved for funding by FEMA is what the state of Florida requested to meet the needs of tens of thousands of people whose lives were forever altered by recent catastrophic hurricanes. Maybe there is a discussion to be had about the merits of mental health outreach efforts by the federal government and states, but hurricane victims who've lost everything might beg to differ.
Last Modified: Friday, 13-Oct-2006 12:45:46