DataSheet_1_Significant PTSD and Other Mental Health Effects Present 18 Months After the Fort Mcmurray Wildfire: Findings From 3,070 Grades 7–12 Students.docx

Background: The May 2016 wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada forced evacuation of the population of 88,000 individuals and destroyed 10% of the homes. Youth are particularly impacted by disaster.
Methods: Eighteen months after the wildfire, Fort McMurray Public and Catholic Schools surveyed 3,252 of the 4,407 students in Grades 7–12 to determine possible long-term psychological impacts. The survey included validated measurement scales for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, use of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco, quality of life, self-esteem, and resilience. Data analysis was possible for only 3,070 students, i.e., 70% of the total student population. Anonymized data were analyzed to compare students who directly experienced lesser or greater impact from the wildfire, with greater impact defined as personally seeing the fire or having one’s home destroyed. Also, students with greater or lesser scores on the Child and Youth Resilience Measure (CYRM-12) were compared.
Results: Of the 3,070 students, 37% met criteria for probable PTSD; 31% met criteria for probable depression, and 17% for probable depression of at least moderate severity; 27% of students met criteria for probable anxiety, and 15% for probable alcohol or substance use disorder; 46% of all students met criteria for one or more probable diagnosis of PTSD, depression, anxiety, or alcohol/substance abuse, and this included students who were both present and not present in Fort McMurray at the time of the wildfire. Students with greater impact from the wildfire exhibited significantly higher scores on measures of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and alcohol/substance use. They also had lower self-esteem and quality of life scores. Students with lower resilience scores exhibited a similar pattern.
Conclusions: These findings highlight first the negative impact of disasters on youth mental health, particularly for those who directly experience wildfire, and second the role of resilience on youth mental health, with lower resilience associated with substantially lower mental health outcomes. These results emphasize the need for long-term mental health supports for youth post-disaster, with specific focus on increasing youth resilience, which may serve as a protective factor against effects of disaster on mental health.

背景：2016年5月，加拿大阿尔伯塔省麦克默里堡发生野火，导致当地8.8万人口被迫疏散，10%的住宅被毁。青少年群体在灾害中受影响尤为显著。
方法：野火发生18个月后，麦克默里堡公立与天主教学校对辖区内4407名7至12年级学生中的3252名开展调查，以评估该群体可能存在的长期心理影响。本次调查采用了经过验证的测评量表，涵盖创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）、抑郁、焦虑、药物/酒精/烟草使用情况、生活质量、自尊水平以及心理韧性（Resilience）。最终仅3070名学生的数据分析有效，占学生总人数的70%。研究人员对匿名化数据进行分析，比较了受野火影响程度不同的学生群体：影响程度较大被定义为亲眼目睹野火或个人住宅被毁。同时，研究还对比了儿童青少年心理韧性量表（Child and Youth Resilience Measure, CYRM-12）得分高低不同的学生组。
结果：在3070名参与有效分析的学生中，37%符合疑似创伤后应激障碍的诊断标准；31%符合疑似抑郁的诊断标准，其中17%达到至少中度程度的疑似抑郁；27%的学生符合疑似焦虑的诊断标准，15%符合疑似酒精或物质使用障碍的诊断标准；46%的学生至少符合一项上述疑似诊断标准，这一结果涵盖了野火发生时身处或未身处麦克默里堡的学生。受野火影响程度较大的学生，其创伤后应激障碍、抑郁、焦虑以及酒精/物质使用相关量表得分均显著更高，同时自尊水平与生活质量得分更低。心理韧性得分较低的学生也呈现出相同的异常模式。
结论：本研究结果首先凸显了灾害对青少年心理健康的负面影响，尤其是直接经历野火的青少年；其次证实了心理韧性在青少年心理健康中的保护作用——较低的心理韧性与更差的心理健康结局显著相关。研究结果强调，灾后需为青少年群体提供长期心理健康支持，尤其应注重提升青少年的心理韧性，这可作为抵御灾害对青少年心理健康造成不良影响的保护因素。