Human Resources and
Critical
Incident Stress Management (CISM)
Overview:
The unusual nature, high risk, and human impacts of disaster or all hazard incident responses creates unusual exposures to stress on employees. This may result in special Human Resource Management concerns and issues that leadership will be prepared to address.
Personnel exposed to life and death situations, injured personnel, handling or moving invalids, patients, or the infirm, or other disaster situations can be affected by critical incident stress. Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) teams are available to assist IMT's on site or at pre-arranged locations. These services are available through normal ordering and dispatch channels. The stresses associated with All Hazard assignments dictate when a team should be ordered. The decision should be made by the Incident Commander after coordination with appropriate personnel, normally in the Safety and Human Resource functions.
All incident management teams are encouraged to staff the Human Resource Specialist (HRSP) position. HRSP’s are trained to provide CISM support. This may include listening skills, peer support, and defusing (initial intervention and assistance). Once the decision is made by the IMT to order CISM, the HRSP assists with resource ordering, logistical support, coordinating CISM needs, and liaison between CISM and IMT. In large scale disaster situations, an option is to add CISM coordination at Area Command.
In order to assure leadership is provided for all Human Resource and CISM activities, R8 will proactively staff for oversight and coordination at the regional and incident levels. The Regional HRSP Coordinator will be considered a key team player in coordinating the HRSP and CISM response to a major All Hazard mobilization.
Issues and Concerns:
- CISM Teams used should be trained specifically to perform CISM for firefighters and/or emergency responders.
- Team should offer services beyond the Critical Incident Stress Debriefing.
- CISM Team should visit affected personnel within 72 hours of a critical incident.
- CISM builds on peer to peer support.
- Group validation of impacts is important because the group will continue to provide support to each other.
- Some people may need one-on-one follow-up.
- A CISD meeting will take as little or as much time as the group allows.
Critical Incident Stress Management Support
for All Hazard Mobilizations
Program Purpose and Goals
The purpose of the Southern Region All Hazard Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Program is to maintain the productivity of NWCG human resources mobilized in response to all hazard incidents
The goal of the program is to assure that appropriate CISM services are available to NWCG resources that are most likely to be adversely affected by all hazard assignments and to communicate the availability of resources for follow up services once potentially affected individuals return to their home units.
The Region expects to mobilize appropriate CISM resources in response to a significant critical incident, and then actively implement the most appropriate crisis intervention tactics in response to observable signs or reported symptoms (evidence of need) of distress and/or dysfunction.
Mobilization Triggers
As the wildland fire community exposure to all hazard events continues to grow, our knowledge about the emotional risks to responders will expand. At this point, based on experiences since 2001 the following activities or assignments should trigger some level of assessment for the need to initiated CISM services. The need is most significant during initial mobilizations where the mission separation has not been assured. Triggering assignments include:
- Direct support to fatality recovery efforts
- Direct support to first aid facilities
- Direct support to event victims
- Responder fatalities or serious injuries
- Suicide
- Traumatic events that might be localized to individual resources or crews
On site Assessment and Response
If there is any question about potential need for CISM service, an assessment may be provided by qualified mental health or CISM providers. The assessment can be requested from either the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation a (ICISF) and National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA).
Both organizations have volunteer CISM Teams available for mobilization in over 40 states. These teams are trained providers who are mobilized for all hazard responses. By contacting the organizations’ hotline, you can obtain the contact information for the appropriate team for your area. Some States utilize a State coordinator system and others have Regional or local teams. The appropriate team Coordinators will assist in providing both CISM needs assessments and services. In many states CISM Teams are already funded through FEMA grants and will cover expenses. If the program does not have a FEMA grant responders may be signed up on a volunteer agreement covering their expenses.
Mobilization
The IMT requesting CISM assistance or response should contact SACC through normal dispatch processes with orders. If needed, the phone number for SACC is 678-320-3000.
SACC can request CISM through multiple channels. Structural Fire Departments use the following process:
- Contact 1- (410) 313-2473 hotline for initial screening
- Obtain referral to appropriate Coordinator or team from Hotline contact
- Contact State Coordinator or appropriate team contact
- Contact CISM representative to coordinate delivery of the appropriate CISM services
- Have Request Form completed
- May include setting up logistics
- Contact Dispatch to name request THSP-CISM based on agency sponsoring the CISM Team providing the requested service (i.e. GA-DEM – party Leader John Doe & 3).
Home Unit Services
Many CISM services should be offered after a responder has left the incident and has returned home. Symptoms are oftentimes not recognized until after responders try to return to a more normalized environment. CISM services are available to home units by using the identified hotline contacts or through agency Employee Assistance Programs.