Supporting those in the business of saving lives.

Central MN EMS Region

CISM

(Critical Incident Stress Management)
Text Box: CISM Team Member Information

About CISM:

 

The Central MN EMS Region provides Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) services to the Central EMS community.  A team of CISM volunteers work together to help EMS personnel survive the stress of a critical incident. 

 

Stress Management Services (CISM) include:

 

· Peer Support:  Short-term informal one-to-one peer support and referral assistance. 

· Defusing:  An informal one-to-one or group session designed to focus on, and educate about, immediate reactions to an event.

· Debriefing (CISD):  A more formal group-orientated process which explores and attempts to lessen the psychological and emotional impact of a difficult event.

· Demobilization and Crisis Management Briefings:  A brief discussion about the impact of an event designed to help “defuse” personnel as they are released from a major prolonged incident.

· On-Site Stress Management:  Provides trained individuals at the scene of prolonged major incidents to facilitate emotional support.

· Awareness Training:  A special pre-incident awareness education program to educate personnel about CISM.

 

Of all the CISM services offered, the Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) is the service most often requested.

 

A critical incident is any traumatic event that is outside the usual range of human experience.  These events have the potential of causing traumatic stress reactions that may impair cognitive, emotional, spiritual, or physical function.  These reactions are normal response to an abnormal situation.

.

Examples of Critical Incidents Include:

 

· Line of duty death/injury

· Child’s death/trauma

· Mass casualty incident/disaster

· Prolonged extrication effort

· Use of deadly force

· Fire death

· Suicide

· Trauma to someone you know

· Several critical events over a short period of time.

 

Emergency Medical Services personnel (law enforcement, dispatch, ambulance, fire/rescue, and hospital staff) experience more traumatic events than the general public as “part of the job” and generally cope very well.  However, situations like those noted above and others may evoke strong reactions in even the most experienced staff.

 

A Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) is:

 

· A structured group process led by a behavior health professional and emergency service peers.

· Strictly confidential.  Limited to shoe emergency service personnel who were directly involved in an incident.

· Not a critique.

· Usually done between 24 and 72 hours after the incident.  However, it is never too late for a debriefing.

· Designed to assist participants in understanding the thought, emotions, and behaviors that occur as a result of a critical incident.

 

How Does a CISD Help?

 

Emergency services personnel benefit from a CISD because it:

 

· Reduces the impact of critical incident stress.

· Reduces isolation by interaction with others who were there.

· Provides an environment to talk about a difficult situation without judgment or critique.

· Normalizes, through education, about stress reactions.

· May help prevent delayed psychological problems

· Improves coping skills for future incidents.
Text Box: To Activate The CISM Team: Call 1-800-556-4911 Give them your name, telephone number, and agency name. Give a brief description of the incident. A team coordinator will return your call and ask for additional information. The team coordinator will work with you schedule services.