School-Based Interventions Aimed at the Prevention and Treatment of Adolescents Affected by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake: A Three-Year Longitudinal Study

Abstract

How natural disasters affect the psychological state of adolescents has not been well studied. Thus, we examined the effect of a natural disaster on high-school-aged youth and considered the most effective forms of support following such a disaster. We examined students from two high schools that were near the epicenter of the 9.0-magnitude Great East Japan Earthquake, which struck the Tohoku coastal area on March 11, 2011, causing severe damage to the region. The questionnaires measuring depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress reaction (PTSR) was administered to the students 3 times between July 2012 and August 2014; students who scored above the cut-off values of these measures were considered highrisk students. School teachers, nurses, and counselors provided a school-based intervention for all highrisk students identified in the survey. Data were analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis H-test. Survey data revealed that 860 of the 1,432 (55.9%) high school students were at high risk of psychological trauma in 2012. This rate did not change substantially in the following 2 years, reaching 1,059 of 1,488 (69.1%) in 2013, and 949 of 1,430 (62.7%) in 2014. Depression and PTSR scores were significantly lower after the intervention (for 2nd and 3rd grade students in 2013 and 2014) compared to before (for the initial 2012 survey). However, there were no significant differences between the 1st grade students for all three years. Thus, school-based interventions involving psychological testing and interviews might reduce the rates of depression and PTSR in high school students.

Longitudinal characteristics of resilience among adolescents: A high school student cohort study to assess the psychological impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake

“…The ethics committees of the Miyagi Prefecture Psychiatric Care Center and Hokkaido University approved the research protocol. After explaining the purpose and protocol of the investigation to the high school, with the cooperation of the Miyagi‐ken School Board, we obtained consent for the investigation . We sent an information brochure explaining the study and asking for cooperation, as well as a questionnaire, to the high school.…”

“…The data analysis and interpretation of the results were conducted at Miyagi Psychiatric Center; the Department of Psychiatry, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine; and the Department of Disaster Psychiatry, International Research Institute of Disaster Science, Tohoku University. Data analysis and interpretation were performed without access to the raw data to avoid possible divulgence of identifiable information because it was possible that the high school students might attend one of the three facilities, which are in the same prefecture …”

“…The high school is located close to where the tsunami struck. Immediately after the GEJE, the high school students had left the school and evacuated inland to escape the tsunami …”

“…Psychiatrists at the Miyagi Psychiatric Center who specialized in adolescent psychiatry provided consultation meetings once a month with the schoolteachers to follow up with the students and conducted interviews with the students when needed. If a student and parent requested, or a student exhibited a serious psychological condition, he or she was referred to the psychiatrist at the Miyagi Psychiatric Center …”

“…To date, we have investigated the impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE)17,18 on the mental health conditions of high school students in the area severely affected by the catastrophe. We have focused on high school students because they may be highly stressed considering that they are experiencing a period of extensive physical and social development and many are in positions to make important decisions about their future, including whether to start working or continue their studies after graduation . Therefore, the characteristics of resilience, along with the effects of a disaster on the mental health condition of high school students, need to be elucidated.…”