キーワード：　広域災害、教員、保育士、ストレスケア

http://www.human.tsukuba.ac.jp/counseling/teacher/

　東日本大震災（2011 年3 月11 日）は、４年経ったいまなおその爪痕を深く残し、様々なショック症状に苦しむ人々が、ストレスケアを必要としています。なかでも、被災した子供たちやその家族に対する心身ケアや支援を一手に担ってきた教員・保育士は、自身のストレスケアを二の次三の次にしがちのため、ストレスが残りやすい状況にあります。「東日本大震災被災地の教員へのストレスケア・支援」リサーチユニットでは、「学校・教育」「家族・福祉」「社会・産業」の三領域に専門を持つ教員の研究知見を集積し、被災地の教員や保育士のストレス軽減と望ましいストレスケアの在り方を探求しています。

救援者にとって一番大事なストレスケアは誇り

図1：消防職員を対象としたピアサポート研修の様子

災害を直接知る被災者やその救助にあたる消防職員のためのストレス対策は、以前より注目され整備がすすんでいますが、現地の教員・保育士・看護師・被災地の一般公務員など、支援に関わって働く救援者に対するケア対策はほとんどありません。私たちは、救援する側が健全さを持っていれば健全なサポートができる、という理念のもと、救援者向けに講演や個人面談、メールでの問い合わせ返答などを行ってきました（図１）。その結果わかってきたのは、「誇り」というキーワードです。厳しい状況のなかで、頑張ってきた教員や保育士たちの誇りを支えることこそが、最も重要なストレスケアなのだと実感しています。 

ストレスケアを組み込んだ災害対策モデルを提案したい

ストレスケアの基本は、自分の体験を自分の人生の中に意味のあるものとして位置付けられるようにすることです。症状が重い場合は、不安を打ち消すようなトレーニングをいくつか組み合わせて行うこともありますが、実際のストレスケアでは、仲間が果たす役割が大きいことを確認してきました。また、あなたたちを覚えていて何かしたいと思っています、とメッセージを出し続けることもとても重要です。
そこで、本リサーチユニットでは、救援者たちに行われたストレスケアの記録をまとめるとともに、その結果をもとに、望ましいストレスケアの形や、離れた地域の皆さんが支え合うネットワークづくりに挑戦していきたいと思っています。また、ストレスケアを組み込んだ災害対策モデルを自治体や一般企業に提案していきたいです（図２）。

図2：リサーチユニットの体制図

Unit name: Support and Care Unit for The Teachers in an Areas Severely Damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake

Key words: wide-area disasters, teachers, nursery teachers, stress care

       Even four years after the Great East Japan Earthquake, which occurred on March 11th, 2011, its influences still remain, and there are many people who require stress care due to a variety of shock symptoms. In particular, teachers and nursery teachers who have been providing children and their families in disaster-stricken areas with physical/psychological care and support tend to become stressed out because they have little or no time for their self-care to reduce or prevent stress. The research unit, “Support and Care Unit for The Teachers in an Areas Severely Damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake”, consisting of academic staff specializing in the following three fields: “school/education”, “family/welfare”, and “society/industry”, aims to reduce stress experienced by teachers and nursery teachers in disaster-stricken areas and develop desired stress care, using their expertise and knowledge.

“Pride” as the most effective stress care for supporters

Figure 1: A scene of peer support training for fire-fighters

Although increasing attention is being given to stress-prevention measures for people who have experienced disasters and fire fighters or rescue workers, and there has been progress in the development of such measures, few care measures have been developed for teachers, nursery teachers, nurses, civil servants, and other people working to provide support in disaster-stricken areas. We have: delivered lectures for supporters, conducted personal interviews with them, and answered their inquiries by email, based on the philosophy that people of sound mind can provide appropriate support (Figure 1). We learned the importance of “pride” – the keyword, throughout those activities. The most important role of stress care is to support the pride of teachers and nursery teachers who have been exerting their efforts in difficult situations.

Proposal of disaster-prevention models that have incorporated stress care

Figure 2: Structure of the research unit (Click the image to see the enlarged image.)

The basis of stress care is to help people position their experiences as meaningful events in their lives. The results of our previous studies suggest that when stress care is provided for supporters, significant roles are fulfilled by their peers, although multiple types of training will be combined and conducted to reduce their anxiety if the symptoms are severe. It is also very important to continue to send a message: “We remember you, and we are willing to do something for you” to supporters.

The research unit organizes records of stress care provided for supporters, discusses the desired form of stress care based on the records, and takes on the challenge of developing networks to help people living in different areas support each other. We will also make a proposal on anti-disaster measures involving stress care to local governments and companies (Figure 2).

Interviewed on May 2nd, 2014