About DAC

Key Activities / Statistics / Populations Served / Other Interested Groups

Key Activities:

Develop and maintain the Mental Health Section of the State Emergency Plan. Participate in federal, state, local emergency exercises. Provide training and technical assistance to local mental health on planning, preparedness, and mitigation issues. Provide county mental health staff with training materials and educational materials on human response to disasters and disaster preparedness.

Coordinate statewide disaster response and recovery activities. Provide assessment of need, service delivery, and federal grant application requirements technical assistance, consultation, and training to local mental health. Initiate the application process for federal funding.

Administer all FEMA funded disaster crisis counseling assistance and training grants. Provide grant design and implementation consultation and technical assistance to local mental health. Monitor grant recipient programs and funding expenditures through site visits and county reports. Prepare mandated reports for the federal government.

Participate and assume mental health related responsibilities in federal, state, and local planning groups and advisory committees, i.e., Statewide Emergency Planning Committee, FEMA Regional Interagency Steering Committee for California Response Planning and the Local Mental Health Coordinators Regional Committees.

Recommend, analyze, interpret and implement federal and state legislation, laws, regulations, and policies related to federal grants and emergency activities. Develop DMH disaster mental health policy guidelines. Provide compliance direction to local mental health programs and grant recipients. Recognized nationally as a leader in disaster mental health services, DMH also provides consultation, information and education to other states, other countries, and the non-mental health sector.

Statistics:

Over $66 million Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) crisis counseling assistance and training funds have been awarded to California since October 1987 to alleviate mental health problems caused by the massive devastation of earthquakes, fires, civil unrest, freeze and winter storms. Since 1987, the Disaster Assistance Unit has administered 19 FEMA funded Immediate Services Programs and 15 FEMA funded Regular Programs. The most recent being the 1998/99 Freeze, FEMA 1267-DR-CA; services awarded from December 20, 1998 through April 15, 2000.

Populations Served:

The FEMA crisis counseling and training program is designed to serve all individuals who live or work in a disaster area. Although elements of the program are directed to individuals at particular risk, the overall thrust is to provide counseling and education to "normal people responding normally to abnormal situations." The program is intended to safeguard the mental health of people affected by disasters, but it also recognizes that people with mental illnesses have special needs in times of disaster.

Other interested groups/parties:

Federal, State and local Disaster Response/Recovery Agencies and the private sector relief organizations, i.e., American Red Cross, Salvation Army, etc.