Page 135 - GHES-3-2

Global Health Economics and
Sustainability
The impact of PTSD on memory and cognition

Behavioral Memory Test was translated into Urdu, and and contrast the lives, feelings, thoughts, and emotions of
certain components of the test were altered to work better earthquake victims and the general population of Pakistan.
with the circumstances of the Pakistan earthquake victims. The same principal measures were utilized for all three
Mental health specialists have utilized an assortment groups. First, the participants filled out the self-assessment
of scientific and investigational neuropsychological PTSD questionnaire. This stem was intentionally
tests to examine PTSD in patients. This study employed informally implemented to allow honest self-assessment
a questionnaire addressing PTSD symptoms that is by participants.
endorsed by the American Psychiatric Association’s Second, the Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test was
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders administered a week after completing the questionnaire.
(American Psychiatric Association, 2000). The fourth This specific test was used for many reasons including the
edition of this instrument is also known as the DSM-IV, fact that it allowed repetitive evaluations through daily
and this questionnaire was adapted for the present study illustrations, and the researcher could thus examine the
for two reasons. First, it is the format used by mental consistency, development, or decline in memory during
health providers to conclude whether or not an individual the study period. This test was also chosen for the present
suffers from PTSD. Second, it also accords adolescents a study because it enabled the researcher to chart a clear link
relaxed means of self-assessment (American Psychiatric between memory and PTSD.
Association, 2000). The questionnaire is basic; thus,
adolescent respondents would not encounter difficulties in Third, the Writing for Recovery Manual (version April
registering their answers. Moreover, the questionnaire was 2008) was applied. This instrument was selected because
easily translated into Urdu. scholars worldwide consider it a leading and updated
intervention method. This study required an intervention
Many thousands of adolescents were affected when that would help the participants instead of upsetting them
the Pakistan earthquake occurred. Thousands became and would simultaneously help the researcher assess the
orphans, and thousands were detached from their families level of PTSD in the participating adolescents.
for some time. Their homes and schools were ruined and as
a third-world country, Pakistan did not have the necessary Fourth, the Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test was
resources to implement proper interventions for such readministered to compare the results of the memory test
adolescents (Mancuso et al., 2008). Hence, the Writing for before and after the manual was applied. This retest was
also intended to determine whether the manual affected
Recovery Manual (version April 2008) was applied because memory cognition.
it was apt to the nature of this study.
Finally, the PTSD self-assessment questionnaire was
In April 2005, numerous specialists in written and
verbal expression after PTSD came together in Bergen, also readministered to ascertain the types of effects
exerted by the manual on PTSD in the participating
Norway to develop a writing manual for adolescents adolescents. These steps remained the same for all three
who experienced wars or disasters (such as the Pakistan groups. For example, even group A filled out the PTSD
earthquake). The manual is reliable and is regarded as the questionnaire, even though the participants designated
best in the field because these specialists had previously to this group were not earthquake victims. This action
successfully adapted cognitive behavioral therapy was taken to ensure uniformity throughout the study and
techniques. Furthermore, this manual was selected because to discover whether group A’s PTSD results before and
it deals with written memory and the present study focused after the intervention were comparable to the outcomes
on memory and PTSD. Moreover, the manual was easy obtained for groups B and C.
manual to administer and its basic format and language
made it easy to translate into Urdu. However, group A was tested in Islamabad while groups B
and C were tested at the same location in Mansehra because
2.3. Measures group A represented the control group and comprised

Before the study began, 47 earthquake victims aged adolescents who were not earthquake victims.
between five and 76 years were casually interviewed to Each writing manual session lasted 15 min, the
attain a general idea of PTSD conditions in the earthquake Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test took approximately
survivor environment. The casual interviews were also 25 min to complete, and filling in the PTSD questionnaire
conducted to develop a context and acquire an impression did not take more than 20 min. A maximum time limit of
of the conditions of earthquake victims. The control group 25 min was imposed on every activity undertaken during
of 25 individuals who were not earthquake victims was the study because adolescent earthquake victims usually
then interviewed. This measure was adopted to compare display reduced attention, concentration, and patience.

Volume 3 Issue 2 (2025) 127 https://doi.org/10.36922/ghes.5121