House Fires

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The Physical and Mental Damages After a House Fire.
In commonplace, house fires frequently occur in our society. A house fire may destroy one’s home entirely, cause loss of lives and property, and cause post-trauma syndromes for the victims. Disaster theorists have endeavored their research into identifying how victims cope with the loss after a house fire as well as the living problems that these victims encounter as they undergo treatment for recovery (Rosenfeld, 1).
Holaday and McPhearson have extensively expounded on the severity of burs in victims of a house fire. The define severity of a burn basing on three parameters; that is, the skin layer that is affected, the portion of the total skin surface area that is burnt, depth of the skin burn, and the time bound that is required to heal the skin injury (Holladay & McPhearson, 3). As such, there are three types of skin burns. First-degree burns normally affect the epidermis, are quite painful upon any touch, and may take about 3-7 days to heal. Close to the first category are the superficial second-degree burns; which affect the dermis and takes about three weeks to heal. Deep-second degree burns eat into the deep layers of skin and may take more than three weeks to heal. Third-degree burns are catastrophic since they affect the whole skin and further destroy nerves hence they are life-threatening although they may be painless (Holladay & McPhearson, 4).
Depending on the level of severity, victims of skin burns are subjected to various clinical interventions as well as psychological therapy to help them cope with their loss.

As Holaday and colleague note, the use of tubbing and debridement technique to treat skin burs is very painful. The tubbing technique is administered by making the patient soak in a whirlpool that constitutes chemicals, bleach, and water (Holladay & McPhearson, 5). The debridement therapy is administered using a brush to scrap off dead cells from the burnt skin. These treatments are very painful since they are administered at least twice a day in about three weeks. Aside from the two, some skin burns are rectified through skin gratification; whereby, the uninjured skin parts are implanted on the burnt area. Also, the victims can gain recovery through tissue expansion; whereby, a plastic pouch (containing some saline solution) is medically implanted beneath the uninjured skin to aid expansion of the skin to cover the burnt regions.
Adults and children alike normally face psychological, mental, and cognitive difficulties when they end up as victims of a house fire. First, patients may experience occupational pressures which accrue in the aftermath of the fire accident. In the context of the disaster, most victims are disorganized, experience pressures to meet the short-term demands of their children, occupational disruption, and trauma due to environmental loss and dislocation (Rosenfeld, 5). However, researchers have identified that some adults exhibit strong adaptive capabilities. Hence, the professionals in the human service field should embrace their capabilities to promote resiliency rather than wholesomely focus on treating mental or psychological problems which do not exist in some cases. This is evident in the WRKR posting of a Norfolk based family which lost everything in a house fire. Regardless of this loss, smith-the father exhibited strength in handling loss. He says “I just have to be strong for my children right now because I know they need me…” (Berry, 2017) This is a clear indicator of acceptance and ability to cope with the loss.
Works Cited
Rosenfeld, Mark S. “Occupational Disruption and Adaptation: A Study of House Fire Victims.”
American Journal of Occupational Therapy, American Occupational Therapy Association, 1 Feb. 1989, ajot.aota.org/Article.aspx?articleid=1880084.
Holaday, Margot, and Ruth W. McPhearson. “Resilience and Severe Burns.” Journal of Counseling & Development, Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 23 Dec. 2011, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/j.1556-6676.1997.tb02350.x/full.
Berry, B. 2017, December, 28. “Three families lose everything after Norfolk house fire.” Retrieved from: wtkr.com/2017/12/28/three-families-lose-everything-after-house-fire/.