In the past few years we have seen wide scale disasters such as tsunamis, earthquakes, typhoons, floods and bushfires. These have resulted in many deaths and have affected the lives many in Australia, as well as many of our global neighbours.

Such large-scale tragic events can also indirectly affect children and youth. These events are widely reported on the television and in the print media. They can affect our sense of safety and feelings of vulnerability and make us wonder what we can do to help others in need. This is especially the case with children, even young children whom we might think don’t understand the images on the news can be affected. This is not always widely understood.

The resources on this page provide advice on children’s viewing of media coverage of disasters and how mental health professionals can address the issues that may arise from this.