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Sept. 13, 2001 -- No. 428 |
UNC professors offer expertise on mental health needs of disaster
survivors, helping children
The following additional University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
professors are available to the media for analysis and commentary on Tuesday's
(Sept. 11) tragic events and the aftermath:
Eyewitness account and economic analysis:
- Dr. James F. Smith, (919) 968-9995, home; (919) 962-3176, office; or
(919) 593-0308, cell; or e-mail, smith.jf@mindspring.com,
finance professor at the Kenan-Flagler Business School, can share an eyewitness
account of the destruction and death he saw Tuesday in New York City from
his hotel room across the street from the World Trade Center. He can also
share his opinions about the economic impact on the national and state economies
from his perspective as the nation’s most accurate economic forecaster – a
title The Wall Street Journal has given him three times in the past five years.
For more about Smith’s expertise and interests, click to: http://www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/faculty/directory/57.html
· Mental health needs of disaster survivors:
- Dr. Margaret Miles, mmiles@email.unc.edu,
a professor at the School of Nursing and a psychiatric nursing expert,
has experience in dealing with the mental health of disaster survivors. She
is the author of several studies featuring the survivors of the Hyatt hotel
walkway collapse in Kansas City in 1981 and Hurricane Floyd in North Carolina
in 1999. She can speak about the three phases of disaster – pre-impact, impact
and post-impact – and how to help survivors cope with their resulting psychological
reaction, including euphoria in having survived, disillusionment in having
lost a sense of innocence and an old way of life and reconstruction in going
forward with life. Miles also is experienced in training other nurses to deal
with the mental needs of disaster survivors.
Fear of flying, other anxiety disorders
- Dr. R. Reid Wilson, (919) 942-0700 or rrw@med.unc,
is associate clinical professor of psychiatry in the School of Medicine and
a clinical psychologist in private practice. He specializes in the treatment
of anxiety disorders, including panic disorder and panic attacks, fear of
flying, phobias, social anxiety, worries, obsessive-compulsive disorder, psychological
responses to trauma and disasters and post-traumatic stress disorder. He designed
and served as lead psychologist for American Airlines’ first national program
for the fearful flier. He is the author of the book "Don’t Panic: Taking
Control of Anxiety Attacks."
The range of responses:
- Dr. Lawrence Grossberg, (919) 969 8586 or docrock@email.unc.edu,
a professor of communication studies, can comment on why so many citizens
are responding with patriotism and showing the flag, media coverage of the
tragedies, cultural and symbolic dimensions, and the difficulty of making
sense of these events.
Military, terrorism, national security:
- Dr. Stephen Biddle, (717) 245-4126, office; (717) 960-9849, home; or
sbiddle@unc.edu, an assistant professor
of political science, is an expert in military strategy. He can speak on what
options and principles a power the size of the United States might contemplate
in response to such an attack, as well as why enemies of the United States
use terrorism. Biddle is on leave from UNC for a year as a research professor
at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pa., where he is researching how
to balance land and air power in warfare. His research interests also include
the future of warfare, causes of war, nature and assessment of power, offense-defense
theory and military history of the 20th century. He also is writing a book
about military capability. Biddle earned a doctorate in public policy in 1992
from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. Previously,
he was a research staff member at the Institute for Defense Analysis in Washington,
D.C., for more than 10 years. He has testified on matters of defense planning
and arms control before the U.S. House Armed Services Committee.
- Dr. Mark Crescenzi (cre-SIN-zi), (919) 960-9153, crescenzi@unc.edu,
assistant professor of political science, is an expert on international conflict
and war. He can discuss political options the United States faces in the international
arena, and, in the realm of national security, why these attacks were not
prevented. He also specializes in links between international economic interdependence
and conflict.
Public health issues:
- Dr. Philip Singer, (919) 966-3865 or phil_singer@unc.edu,
is a professor of environmental sciences and engineering and director of the
Drinking Water Research Center in the School of Public Health. He can speak
to drinking water quality, water systems management and threats to drinking
water supplies.
- Dr. Mark Sobsey, (919) 966-7303 or mark_sobsey@unc.edu,
is a professor of environmental sciences and engineering in the School of
Public Health. He can speak to drinking water quality, safe water supplies
and water-related threats.
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Contacts: News Services staff, (919) 962-2091