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Press Release - Review of the experiences of United Kingdom nationals affected by the Indian Ocean Tsunami

30 November 2006

• Full report - Review of the experiences of United Kingdom nationals affected by the Indian Ocean Tsunami

The results of a survey of UK nationals who were affected by the Indian Ocean tsunami were released today by the National Audit Office. The work provides the most complete account yet about what people experienced, and how they felt about the response of UK agencies in providing support. The assistance provided was seen as good in parts, but there were clearly also lessons to be learned. The government has committed itself to preparing an action plan in response to the findings to improve efforts at assistance in any future crisis.

The sheer scale of the tsunami overwhelmed the initial response of the UK agencies, who didn’t have a plan for responding to such a challenge. Members of the public services, their families, friends and other volunteers worked hard, through long hours over many days, to help and assist victims of the tsunami. But experiences reported by the 116 respondents included: survivors not finding UK officials in the affected areas who were able to give them effective help; family and friends in the UK not being able to get through on the overwhelmed emergency telephone lines, and to obtain subsequent updates; and traumatised people returned to the UK feeling "lost" in the wider health system.

However, better standards were achieved in some areas once the agencies had time to react and prepare a response. Some actions which respondents felt were handled well included planning for relatives to visit the affected areas, organising memorial events and directing people towards support networks.

The research, which was undertaken for the NAO by the charity the Zito Trust, gave rise to over fifty recommendations. The key areas for improvement are as follows:

• broaden the training and assessment of staff likely to deal with traumatised people;
• prepare and plan to help people better help themselves;
• use more innovative approaches for recording casualties and missing persons;
• improve data gathering and sharing between agencies to avoid multiple questioning & inconsistent records;
• enhance tracking of people once they have returned to the UK, as a basis for aftercare.

Much of the necessary work involved in acting upon these recommendations is already underway. Led by the Department for Culture Media and Sport, the Government have agreed to respond with an action plan within six months.

The experiences of those affected also draw out considerations for some outside of government. Parts of the media were criticised for the way they dealt with people affected by the disaster; and private companies, such as banks or customer service businesses, also need to consider more carefully how they handle the bereaved.

Notes for Editors

1. For media queries relating to first hand experiences please contact Michael Howlett at the Zito Trust on 01497 820011. For media enquiries relating to recommendations to government, please contact Mark Anderson at the NAO on 020 7798 7558 or 07796 937 119
2. The Zito Trust is a Registered Charity experienced in dealing with and supporting the families of victims of sudden or violent death. The Trust submitted the research proposal for independent review by an NHS ethics board, and fieldwork began once full approval was granted in February 2006. The Trust handled all contact with the people affected and questions relating to the individual experiences in the main body of the report should be directed to the Trust.
3. The principal UK agencies involved were the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Department for Culture Media and Sport (which co-ordinates aftercare to victims), the Department of Health, the British Red Cross and many Police forces around the UK.
4. Press notices and reports are available from the date of publication on the NAO website, which is at www.nao.org.uk. Hard copies can be obtained from The Stationery Office on 0845 702 3474.
5. The Comptroller and Auditor General, Sir John Bourn, is the head of the National Audit Office which employs some 850 staff. He and the NAO are totally independent of Government. He certifies the accounts of all Government departments and a wide range of other public sector bodies; and he has statutory authority to report to Parliament on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which departments and other bodies have used their resources.

Press Notice 65/06