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Support students, staff in crisis recovery

By Mary Scoenfeldt, owner of Schoenfeldt and Associates.

The concepts and strategies of Critical Incident Stress Management should be an integral part of any safe school crisis intervention plan to provide support for trauma among students and staff in the wake of a crisis.

When a school community experiences a traumatic event, many forms of intervention are needed. Most such mediation falls under a broad category called Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM). Specific activities range from informal contacts and expressions of support through a more structured defusing process to a formal critical incident stress debriefing. These interventions may be accomplished informally by individuals who care about one another or by highly skilled trauma special As the intensity of the intervention increases, so does the need for specialized training of the interveners.

Critical incident stress management activities do not have to be performed by mental health professionals exclusively. In fact, some of the most effective such activities are carried out by peers who have had specialzed training. To protect both the interveners and the participants, it is recommended that more than one person facilitate group activities. Such shared leadership encourages objective interaction and provides a reality check. That is, when one facilitator is interacting, the other is watching, assessing the interaction and noting the reactions of other group members. Thus the facilitators' shared responsibilities can also provide reciprocal support under conditions that are often emotionally intense. In the school system, perhaps a teacher, a school bus driver or a counselor will be the one who has received specialized training in understanding the dynamics of trauma and the structured process of debriefing and other stress management activities.

Although CISM activities are approprite for all groups in a school community - students, staff, parents - the activities should be conducted in homogeneous rather than mixed groups. Services provided in peer groups ensure provision of an accepting, confidential forum in which peers feel comfortable discussing their reactions to a given incident. Specialized training for Critical Incident Stress Management is available through many organizations, such as the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation. [Contact author Schoenfeldt for more information.]

Staff debriefings
The very nature of traumatic incidents causes those involved to become secondary victims, if not direct victims. The magnitude of an event that requires CISM can quickly overwhelm the resources available at a particular school site and can introduce an element of chaos. Therefore it is imperative that schools have intervention resources available that are outside their own system. In times of crisis, it is very difficult for support personnel to maintain the detachment and objectivity necessary for effective debriefing of crisis victims at their own school. Therefore, neighboring school districts should formulate emergency response plans to exchange their corps of trained personnel to provide critical stress management services for their partner districts in times of crisis.

Staff meetings provide a natural forum for critical incident stress management activities. Such settings offer opportunities to give information, dispel rumors, answer questions and exchange information on students, parents or school staff members who may need additional support. A staff meeting is also the place to provide debriefing or defusing activities. If formalized defusing or debriefing is in order, breaking into groups of 15 to 20 is more effective than conducting large group sessions. The smaller groups provide greater opportunity for each person to participate and to express needs for information, help or follow-up. Group leaders can thus more effectively facilitate the debriefing process.

Student debriefings
Classroom debriefing has proven to be a successful form of group crisis intervention in traumatic incidents. Such activities provide a break from the usual classroom routine and give students a chance to vent feelings and reactions to the crisis and explore implications of the event in a safe, familiar, supportive environment structured by trained, caring adults.

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