Chief Minister Counselor at Security policy Dpt.
Ministry of Interior of the Czech Republic;
member of Czech Disaster Victim Identification team

Speech title:
Crisis, Disaster and Trauma Psychology - development of a new field and current challenges and trends

CVPhDr. Štěpán Vymětal, PhD. 

His specialisation is crisis, disaster and trauma psychology. He also works as an expert witness in the field of forensics.

Currently he is an expert at the Ministry of Interior of the Czech Republic (Chief Ministry Counsellor, Security Policy Department). He is responsible for applying psychology in crisis management, implementation of psychosocial support systems during and after mass emergencies, as well as for international cooperation. He is a member of a Posttraumatic Intervention Team of the Czech Police and Disaster Victim Identification Team of the Czech Republic. He cooperates with uniformed services and coordinates the Psychological Assistance Team for Czech Airlines and Smartwings. He teaches Crisis and Disaster Psychology at Charles University in Prague.

He participates in Czech and EU projects in the field of crisis and disaster psychology and psychosocial support. He has worked with traumatized people following large floods in the Czech Republic in 2002, the kidnapping of Czech journalists in Iraq in 2004, the tsunami in SE Asia in 2004, the terrorist attacks in Egypt in 2005 and after mass casualty traffic accidents. He has authored and co-authored many articles and books (Trauma and Journalism, Crisis and Risk communication, Field Crisis Work, Standards of Psychosocial Support and Cooperation, Assisting People with Disabilities in Case of Disaster etc.).

He represents the Czech Republic in the Standing Committee on Crisis, Disaster and Trauma Psychology of the European Federation of Psychologists´ Associations.