Region V Systems and the University of Nebraska Public Policy Center are offering Disaster Psychological First Aid (PFA) training on February 22 and a train-the-trainer course on February 23. Both courses are held in Crete, Nebraska and there is no cost. If you can’t attend this session and are interested in other opportunities, reach out to Kurt Mantonya, University of Nebraska Public Policy Center, kmantonya3@unl.edu.
Why take this course? Nebraska Extension's Role in Emergency Management (Disasters) - an example of how this course could be beneficial to you as an Extension professional:
During the 2019 flooding events, *Multi-Agency Resource Centers (MARCs) were stood up in centralized locations impacted by the disaster. At MARCs, Nebraska Extension had a variety of roles including guiding survivors through stations, providing Extension resources, and answering questions. In some MARC locations, supervision was organized for young children so adult family members could focus on completing paperwork. At these events, our colleagues were engaging with disaster survivors who experienced loss and were seeking help during a tough time. As you can imagine, this can be an emotional experience for everyone involved.
Following the MARCs, one of the Nebraska VOAD partners suggested Disaster PFA as a course that would be beneficial for Extension professionals. Disaster PFA is not therapy, it is "first aid" (much like CPR or QPR). Topics covered in the courses are in the forwarded email.
Please be sure to reach out to Kurt Mantonya (kmantonya3@unl.edu) if you have any questions or want more information about additional dates/locations for Disaster PFA. Thank you for considering this opportunity. Register at https://unl.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_aVkosk7cvPRBCWG
Soni Cochran, scochran2@unl.edu