The Military Unit
For the injured:
1.
Administer last rites as appropriate
2.
Offer spiritual and moral encouragement
3.
Help ensure personal visits by others
For the uninjured:
1. Offer consolation
2. Clarify possible confusion about what happened and address any
guilt over why they were spared (especially leaders)
3. Share grief over lost friends, and make referrals as needed to
other helping professionals
For the replacements:
1. Make them sensitive to the legacy of those who went before them
2. Help them understand that their own lives hold deep value and
significance for the Army and the United States.
The visibility and availability of chaplains should be increased
where soldiers congregate (e.g., pool/mess hall, Post Exchange,
military clubs) for a few weeks following the tragedy.
In addition to the post-wide memorial service, separate memorial
services should be conducted for each unit that lost soldiers.
Orientation sessions/pre-briefings for replacement
or
newly-
recruited soldiers should include a chaplain.
Family Members
For families whose soldier member is in serious/critical condition or
not yet accounted for---Give a presence of prayerful hope.
For families of the dead:
1. Provide personal counseling and referral advice at the center
designated for family assistance
2. Arrange for escorts home, funerals, follow-up calls, and home
visits
3. Promote a good working relationship between family members and
the Survival Assistance Officer/Casualty Affairs Office
4. Assist in establishing family/widow support groups
The staff chaplain's office should expect a deluge of telephone
inquiries consequent to the first reports of a disaster involving
local military personnel.
Many individuals are more likely to
trust information from the chaplains office than that from the
media or other Army offices. Staff members must be provided with
officially sanctioned accurate information.
Referrals may be
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