Lessons From Chilean Disaster Recovery Point to the Critical Role of Social Workers Post-COVID-19

Faculty and the GSSWSR are reaching out to collaborators around the world to ask about lessons that can be drawn from their experiences in crisis, disaster management, and recovery that can help social workers in the United States respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Karina Zuchel, a psychologist, professor, and researcher in Concepción, Chile, met with Carolina Hausmann-Stabile via Zoom to discuss lessons from her experience that could frame social workers’ role in recovery efforts in the United States.

In the past decade, the city of Concepcion and its surrounding areas have endured a series of devastating natural events, including an 8.8 magnitude earthquake followed by a tsunami that resulted in 525 deaths (2010); the eruption of the Calbuco volcano (2015); fire seasons that resulted in extensive damage of natural forests, air pollution, and the destruction of rural communities (2017, 2018); tornados and flooding (2019); the worst civil unrest occurring in Chile since the end of Pinochet’s dictatorship; and now the COVID-19 pandemic.  

These challenges lead to the development of coordinated efforts to prepare organizations to respond to future disruptions.

According to Zuchel, the COVID-19 pandemic is unique from other natural events, in that “in other natural events such as an earthquake or forest fire, those who survive can rush to help those in distress”. During the pandemic, however, the public must practice social distancing and self-quarantine to reduce the risk of mass contagion. Networks of community and national solidarity are central to the response to natural events, and Zuchel notes that “the pandemic calls for a redirection of one’s agency and solidarity, from the public to the private sphere”. This may leave people feeling disempowered and detached. As Zuchel states, “we need to identify new ways to organize community care while social distancing”.  

The pandemic is also different from other natural events in that its impact is not confined in time and space. Zuchel shared that “the impact of COVID-19 is shaped by inequality, the socially constructed structures that make some people more vulnerable to suffering than others”.

Zuchel stressed the importance of involving social workers in the recovery efforts post-COVID 19: “The recovery effort is central to reducing the negative impact of the pandemic and inform preparations for future disruptions”.

For example, as Zuchel shared, we know that COVID-19 has disrupted and changed the delivery of mental health care: “The pandemic has accelerated the need to increase digital skills and access across organizations and in the population”.  She suggested that social workers could develop assessment for digital skills and access to be included in intake packages. This could help identify clients in need for digital skills and access support, and prepare protocols to rapidly migrate services online during a crisis.  

Social workers must be involved in data collection post-COVID-19, to understand what and what did not work during the pandemic. “Collecting data about the impact of COVID-19 will be critical to the recovery efforts but it is not enough” reflected Zuchel. “Data must be shared with the communities, and the exchange of information must be transparent.”