Dealing
with the
trauma
Red Cross’s role began
with meeting victims
at Highlands Pier
BY gloria stravelli
Staff Writer

Courtesy of Long Branch Fire Department Hours after two planes crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, the buildings were reduced to rubble and New York City was left to dig out from under the most devastating terrorist act the world has seen.

When ferries brought passengers fleeing the World Trade Center disaster back to the Highlands last week, among those waiting to minister to them was a team of mental health counselors from the American Red Cross.

Members of the Red Cross Disaster Mental Health Team were poised to provide immediate counseling to victims and their waiting family members.

"We looked for what the mental and emotional state of people coming off the ferries was," said Jennifer Cory, a Red Cross mental health disaster coordinator. "We assessed what people were looking like when they were stepping off the boat. What was their mental state before they came to the end of the pier where family members, police and firefighters were waiting?"

"I found people were relieved," she noted. "They just wanted to go home. What we realized was the people in need of relief were the family members waiting on this side."

At the ferry landing with Cory was Dr. Vera Adler Hoffman, mental health coordinator for the American Red Cross Jersey Coast Chapter headquartered in Tinton Falls. In private practice, Hoffman is a psychologist specializing in trauma.

"Up until now we haven’t had anything this major; we’ve dealt mainly with local fires, hurricanes," said Hoffman, who coordinates teams of medical and mental health disaster volunteers. "I didn’t quite know what to expect this time."

"I knew we would be dealing with injuries ranging from smoke inhalation to more serious injuries," she continued. "We were there as support for our own staff, to make sure they didn’t become overwhelmed. Also, to provide short-term counseling and referrals for victims and families, especially when a situation involves a death."

Disaster Mental Health Teams are comprised of volunteers who are licensed psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and licensed mental health professionals who receive cross training in Red Cross disaster programs.

Hoffman also oversees Disaster Response Teams which comprise a pool of about 20 cross-trained professionals including nurses, social workers, mental health and mass care workers.

Cory and Hoffman spent the first few hours after the terrorist attacks working to put together teams of disaster workers from Monmouth and Ocean counties using a national database of volunteers maintained by the Red Cross.

Since telephone communications were disrupted, the two traveled to the Highlands where the Red Cross had set up a shelter site at Henry Hudson Regional High School and to the ferry landing in Highlands where passengers were expected to disembark.

According to Hoffman, mental health help rendered on site is aimed at "defusing" — assessing the state they’re in, giving them a chance to express what was going on, letting victims know they may experience symptoms like sleeplessness.

Mental health counseling may become necessary after some time has passed, Hoffman noted,

"Often reactions don’t set in until later when people realize the actual toll," she explained. "People are going to need support, basically grief counseling. "Also people who were not directly involved in the horror but who watched it may need help. Something fundamental like our sense of security has been disrupted possibly forever," she said.

"We will provide a place for people to be able to talk about it, work through it. We’ll provide short-term counseling and if need be, we will have group meetings in cooperation with other organizations and professionals in the community."

American Red Cross counseling can be accessed by calling 493-9100.

Counseling for those affected by the World Trade Center disaster is also available from:

The Community YMCA of Red Bank, 290-9040 ext.0;

CPC Behavioral Healthcare, Red Bank, 842-2000 ext. 4221;

Catholic Charities, Red Bank, 747, 9660;

Riverview Medical Center, Red Bank, 530-2438;

VNA of Central Jersey, Red Bank, 1-800-272-1204.