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Webinar (Live) Event

Navigating ethical issues during disasters and emergencies

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Overview

Disasters and emergencies are an ever-present feature of Australian life, but the frequency and intensity of these events is increasing. Projections influenced by such issues as climate change suggest that this trajectory is likely to continue. With recent research indicating that cascading disaster exposure is associated with a mental health and wellbeing decline, the provision of psychological support and assistance to those in need is a valuable resource. However, for those professionals without prior experience or training, supporting in a disaster setting tends to bring with it unique challenges.

This webinar will explore some of the more common ethical challenges that a psychologist may be confronted with. An ethical decision-making framework will be explored via case studies, with the aim of assisting psychologists to be better prepared after disaster strikes.

Level of Learning

Foundational. This activity is targeted to those who are new to the topic.

Duration of access

This webinar will be recorded. Access to the recording and presenter slides is for 12 months from the date of confirmed registration.

CPD Frequently Asked Questions

Refer to the APS CPD Frequently Asked Questions for general and technical information when undertaking APS Professional development activities.

APS CPD-Approved

This eLearning activity has been assessed against the APS Standards for CPD activities and approved for its education quality. Learn more about the APS CPD Approval process.

Explore the Disaster Response Network & Join now

The Disaster Response Network (DRN) is a national volunteer network of APS psychologists who undertake specialist training to support frontline and emergency workers affected by trauma and critical incident stress. Working with Primary Health Networks, local councils, NGOs and other emergency service providers, DRN volunteers provide mental health wellbeing checks to frontline workers via telephone or face-to-face when appropriate. The DRN provides a coordinated approach to reach out to APS members who are able to work with people in disaster situations, inform members of disaster-specific training opportunities, and provide members with updates specific to mental health in disaster contexts.

Learn more

Complete the free activity Responding to disasters and join the DRN. As a DRN member, you will receive free access to a range of professional development to bolster your learning in this area.

Enrol now

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this webinar, participants should be able to:

  • identify the challenges faced by psychologists providing support in the disaster context,

  • acknowledge the contribution of both personal and professional values when working in the disaster context,

  • recognise and understand the likelihood of and presence of ethical dilemmas when working in disaster recovery, 

  • apply ethical knowledge and decision making to ethical dilemmas and ethical issues and integrate this with sound professional practice, and

  • gain an overview of key self-care considerations and strategies relevant to supporting in the disaster context.

Presenter(s)

Shirley Morrissey, David Younger

About the presenter(s)

Shirley Morrissey is a clinical and health psychologist, with a small private practice and an Adjunct Professor at Griffith University, Queensland. Shirley’s current interests continue to be in teaching ethics and professional and practice, and supervising psychologists for professional registration and endorsement to practice. Shirley has had a long and varied career in psychology, working in the area of disaster preparedness and recovery for weather related events (cyclones in particular), ethics and professional practice, interprofessional learning and clinical and health psychology more broadly. Shirley has co-written two textbooks in Ethics and Professional Practice for Psychologists, the APS Online Ethics course, and most recently has co— edited the 5th edition of Teaching Psychology Around the World. Shirley was awarded the APS Distinguished Contribution to Psychology Education in 2015. Shirley ‘retired’ from full time university work in December 2019, and is now in semi-retirement – but she is still passionate about psychology, ethics and professional practice, and continues to be concerned about climate change, a warming planet, risks of increased adverse weather events and disaster preparedness and coping.
David Younger is a Melbourne based clinical psychologist as well as national disaster preparedness and recovery consultant. In 2006 David moved into private practice in rural Victoria and in 2009, the Black Saturday fires came close to where he worked, lived and still lives. As a result, David found himself one of just two psychologists in the township of Whittlesea working with survivors. ‘The next five years were extremely intense and influenced me enormously’, David says. Nowadays, David has almost twenty years’ experience as a psychologist in private practice, working with adults and young people across a broad range of mental health challenges. Particular interest areas include early life trauma, single incident trauma and disaster trauma. Positive psychology and contemporary approaches such as mindfulness and compassion focussed therapy contribute to guiding his therapeutic work. In his disaster preparedness and recovery role, David partners with communities, agencies, organisations, as well as local and state governments across Australia. He has been a trusted advisor after numerous events including bushfires, floods, droughts, cyclones, the 2017 Bourke Street tragedy, thunderstorm asthma, and COVID-19. He is an Honorary Fellow (Clinical) at Melbourne University’s Children and Disasters Advisory Committee and is a Panel Member of the Department of Fairness Families & Housing Psychosocial Reference Group. David is also a workshop facilitator, keynote speaker, and professional mentor.

CPD Approved

2024-25

Webinar

APS member-only activity

DRN member: Free
APS member: $60.00
APS student member: $60.00

Registrations close:
4pm AEST, Tuesday 5 August 2025

Webinar

Webinar

05 Aug 2025

7:00pm - 8:30pm AEST