China's national disaster relief authority has issued a guideline to standardize psychological services such as counseling as part of natural disaster relief work, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA) on Tuesday.
The guideline, drafted by the inter-ministry coordination commission on disaster relief, was designed to safeguard the smooth delivery of such services to victims and rescue workers, in an effort to minimize their exposure to psychological damage or threats, said the statement.
It proposed a comprehensive coordination mechanism between relevant departments and public institutions, as well as a wide service network of well-trained psychological professionals.
According to the guideline, local authorities should implement detailed working procedures and technical specifications for such services.
The guideline also urged more efforts in securing victims' access to media reports on rescue work and self-help tips.
Last year, natural disasters affected 430 million people in China, including 1,126 left dead or missing and 9.39 million who had to be evacuated, and caused direct economic losses of 309.64 billion yuan (49.15 billion U.S. dollars), according to a previous press release from the MCA.
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