"Animal / Human Bonding
Grieving, Coping, Counseling"
|
Dave Johnson
Cascades Biomedical Consulting Intl. Inc. |
Contents: Human-Animal Bond - Response
- Urgent Actions - Grief
- Coping - Personnel
Management - Counseling
Introduction:
This presentation provides a focus on the emotional impact of a disaster
to the research animal staff. The devastating loss of animal lives,
providing care to the injured and ill animals, ongoing chaos, hardships
of the working conditions, uncertainty of the near and long-term future
of the institutions solvency, along with personal and family crises
issues, places a serious emotional burden upon the staff.
Human-Animal Bond
• Domestication
of Animals ~ 20,000 BC developed bonding of humans & animals
• Relationship encompasses food, fiber, sports, security,
assistance to disabled people, companionship, education, and research
• Degree and definition of bonding depends on the intended
relationship
• Humaneness always important |
Early human history recordings of cave art work clearly identifies
the close working and bonding relationships of animals to people. Dogs
provided key support for hunting as well as serving as a guardian to
the human clan. The companionship bonding occurred simultaneously with
this working synergism. As civilization developed, animals provided
activities for sporting, agricultural, food and fiber sources, improved
companionship, breeding for specific strains characteristics for multiple
purposes such as showing, exhibition, and sporting.
Bond with Research Animals
• Experimental
animals began in early Greece and Egypt
• Experimental animals have continued to improve understanding
of biology
• Cartesian philosophy separated humans from nature:
I think therefore I am
• Renaissance philosophy promoted the unity of nature
and humans |
Research with animals began with studies to demonstrate nutrition and
anatomy. Advances of experimental research led to key understanding
of basic physiology and anatomy. Ethical definitions paralleled animal
use whether for research, sporting, or as companions. The Cartesian
viewpoint considered animals as a mechanical aspect of life, therefore,
void of emotions. Renaissance philosophy served to stimulate the current
philosophy that animals were integral aspects of the whole of nature
and the universe. Today, it is generally accepted that animals have
cognition, feelings, and thinking. Thus the Cartesian quote of “I
think therefore I am” can be paraphrased to include animals: “They
think, therefore they are”.
• Darwinism
forged the biological connection of nature and animals: evolution
and the survival of the most adaptable
• Scientific advances in behavioral studies: “Critical
Anthropomorphism”
• Animals have a sense of awareness and “self-awareness”
• Rephrasing Rene Descartes:
• They “think” therefore they “are”
• Ethics of animal use and care (IACUC) |
These emerging ethical issues of animals including their sense of being,
cognitive abilities, ability to feel and express emotions, along with
related behavioral attributes have led to increased sensitivity of their
use by society including biomedical research. The concept of animals
having rights serves as the centerpiece of dialogue, ethical debate,
as well as a rallying point for activist groups. Institutional Animal
Care and Use Committees are on the cutting edge of addressing these
ethical issues.
Initial Response
• Human Safety
• Emergency Care for the Animals
– Triage
– Intervention
– Salvaging
– Medical and Husbandry Care
– Humane Considerations |
During an emergency or crisis situation, the first priority is human
safety. The research animal staff must follow the emergency preparation
programs to assure their safety from injury or death. Only once the
facility is deemed safe as well as their activities within the animal
facility, can steps be taken for emergency care for the animals animals.
Upon entering a research animal facility after a crisis situation, triage
veterinary medical care is implemented. Injured and ill animals are
quickly assessed into three categories. The first category identifies
those animal in urgent need of medical care that have a good prognosis.
The second category identifies those animals not requiring immediate
treatment and have a good chance of recovery. The third category are
those animals whose prognosis is poor whether treatment is provided
or not. Once this triage of definition is provided to the ill and injured
animal, the priority of care is given to category one first, then category
two, and lastly, category three. Animals in category three in pain should
be quickly euthanized. The emergency care of the animals encompasses
triage, intervention, and salvaging as many animals as possible. Medical
care and appropriate husbandry are synergistic to these efforts in meeting
humane considerations.
Urgent Actions Staff Effects
• Emergency
Adrenalin Rush
• Thriving on Chaos
• Problem Solving
• Creativity
• Assessing the Damage
• Exhaustion
• Psychological Well Being |
An emergency crisis stimulates and energizes many of the animal care
providers since they possess the skills required for intervention. This
adrenalin rush and call to duty activates the staff to extraordinary
efforts of productivity. The chaos and urgent problem solving stirs
creativity and problem solving. It also leads to exhaustion, frustration,
and a sense of being overwhelmed. The psychological well being of the
research animal staff is clearly stretched.
Grief:
Dead and Dying Animals: Dead and
Dying Animals
• Delayed return
to animal facility
• Anxiety of their condition
• Frustration of barred from animal facility
• Dilemma of lack of urgent attention to the animals
• Physical Condition of dead and dying animals
• Shock of the Death Scene
• Psychological trauma of mass death
• Coping with surviving animals |
The shock of reality rapidly sets in as the staff witnesses the delay
of being allowed entrance back into the animal facility until safety
officials deem it safe. This is followed by the shock of seeing many
dead and injured animals. The psychological trauma of mass death and
then coping with surviving animals can lead to serious emotional consequences
for the staff.
Grief: Surviving Animals
• Dealing with
surviving animals
• Medically ill
• Injured
• Non clinical conditions affecting long term health
e.g. smoke inhalation of lungs
• Immediate and future value as animal models
• Re-Qualification criteria for research studies
• Euthanasia: mass numbers of animals |
After triaging the animals, the staff then carries out the difficult
tasks of providing intensive care treatment to the animals. Witnessing
the non response of certain animals to treatment leads to frustration.
An additional emotional factor is having to euthanize clinically normal
animals whose exposure to the effects of the disaster no longer qualifies
them for future research. Examples include inhalation exposure to smoke,
drenching from water, and exposure to unknown environmental chemicals.
For animals that do recovery, they need to be re-qualified for new studies.
Re-qualification is frequently undefined and thus places further new
challenges to the staff. On top of these factors, there is the need
for mass euthanasia for animals too injured or ill. Although this is
intrisinically ethical, the process of euthanizing hundreds of animals
can take its emotion toll on employees who are also feeling the emotional
stress of the surrounding crises as they think of their immediate families,
personal health, and future career.
Grief: Post-Disaster
• Animals
• Co-workers
• Facility
• Organization
• Self |
The grief following the aftermath of a disaster, poses challenges to
the research animal staff as they must deal with post disaster issues
of animals, co-workers, facility destruction, chaotic organizational
responses, and for themselves.
Coping
• Grieving Cascades
of Emotions*
–Denial
–Anger
–Bargaining
–Depression
–Acceptance
• Staff will demonstrate an array of these emotions
–Adds to the stress for Supervisors and Managers
*Elisabeth Kubler-Ross: Death and Dying |
The stages of coping with grief are well defined with the seminal studies
of Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. The cascades of events are denial, anger,
bargaining, depression, and finally acceptance. The staff may demonstrate
a variety of these emotions and in any order. Even if they are close
to acceptance, emotional factors can trigger them back to re-start this
process. Depending on the event that they are coping with, they may
have a multitude of these feelings whether their focus of event is loss
of animals, facility destruction, inner feelings of their own loss,
and response to co-workers. Supervisors and managers require the skill
to deal with their staff displaying a wide array of emotions. In addition,
supervisors and managers are coping with their own grieving feelings.
Personnel Management
• Staff Uncertainties
(real or perceived)
–Future employment
–Financial resolve of the institution
–Investigators seeking other employment
–Housing and personal financial losses
–Family willingness to stay in the community
–Temporary layoff, reduced work hours and loss of income
while Institution renovates |
Uncertainties facing the staff may be real or perceived. Yet perceived
uncertainties trigger feelings that are genuine requiring equivalent
coping responses. Personnel management unknowns include future employment,
financial stability of the institution, key investigators with major
grant awards relocating to a different institution, personal financial
hardships, and family members wishing or insisting to relocate to a
different geographical location. Meanwhile, there may be a temporary
layoff and reduced work hours with a loss of income during the facilities
recovery process.
Counseling
• Prearranged
Counseling Services
–Confidential
–Management encouragement
–No cost to employees for initial sessions
–Follow up sessions, covered by medical plan
–Prior to disaster, this counseling service is helpful
for a variety of issues: family, alcohol and substance abuse, depression,
etc. |
A disaster preparation plan can incorporate counseling services to
deal with these emotional and coping issues that will arise. These counseling
services are readily available and many organizations provide them as
part of their Wellness Programs. Fully confidential services are available
to employees for emotional issues such as family problems, marriage
strains, drug abuse, alcoholism, depression, etc. The counselors can
be briefed about the organizational disaster plan so in the event of
a catastrophe, the counselors are better prepared to provide professional
counseling to the staff. These Wellness Programs are usually fully paid
by the organization for multiple initial sessions. If long term counseling
is needed, then this care is transferred to the employee’s medical
insurance program.
Counseling - Post Disaster
• Counseling
Service immediate
• Established contractual relationship with the Institution
and Counseling Service
• Counseling Service will be busy, therefore, a prior
arrangement essential
• Workshops for staff to deal with disasters along with
the recognition of emotional stress: pre-disaster training &
post disaster support |
Having this post disaster counseling services pre-arranged through
these contracted Well Programs, allows readily available counselors
to help the staff. Emergency training programs related to disasters
can include participation from these Wellness Program counselors. By
addressing these emotional and coping issues prior to a disaster, it
complements the organizational Disaster Plan and gives excellent resources
for the employees.
Conclusions
• Develop an
Emergency Plan
• Include Counseling
• Post Disaster Consultants
• Enlist Two Golden Retrievers for the staff
–Comfort
–Care
–Conciliation
–Companionship |
In conclusion, preparing for the emotional stresses to the staff is
as important as training them in triage, emergency veterinary care,
and urgent facility maintenance. Pre and post disaster counseling is
key to any Disaster Plan. Employees will require comfort, care, conciliation,
and companionship. Even arranging for certain employees to bring their
own pets to the employee staff lounge following a disaster provides
excellent emotional support.
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