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Critical Incident Trauma Helping The Helpers From Becoming Casualties Over the past five years we have witnessed some major disasters and acts of terrorism right here in our country. These tragedies have brought to our attention the fact that police officers and other first responders themselves have become psychological casualties. It's not only the big stories on the six o'clock news but the everyday situations officers face. From a shooting to a hostage situation or an officer shot and killed protecting the community he or she serves. Many agencies and departments are beginning to realize these everyday casualties. Some are offering help and others are still following the old ways of policing. In a recent survey, we found many agencies and departments offering programs to assist officers with their stress by having a peer program, an employee assistance program and a CISD team. But many departments had nothing in place and continue to ask the questions, why did that officer leave the job or why did the officer act out in that way? Just fire him!! We must remember, there always room for improvement in our profession. For too many years, officers who have experienced critical incidents were expected to accept it as part of the job, return to work, and function normally, as if nothing had ever happened. For many, this is not necessarily so. Many suffer from various forms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder following their involvement in critical incidents. Agencies and departments should realize they have an obligation to this officer, to his or her family, to the community and to coworkers to help them overcome the stress of the critical incident. What Is A Critical Incident? Any situation that results in an overwhelming sense of vulnerability or loss of control. (Roger Solomon, Ph.D.) Any situation faced by emergency service personnel that causes them to experience unusually strong emotional reactions which have the potential to interfere with their ability to function either at the scene or later. (Jeff Mitchell, Ph.D.) Critical Incidents
VIOLATE ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT HOW THE WORLD WORKS: "This is not supposed to happen." Let's Take An Honest Look At Improvement The first thing a department has to do is take a long honest look at itself and be willing to admit there is a need for change. Many agencies and departments are returning to the concept of community policing. Why doesn't it think of itself as a community or family within a larger community? A community is defined as "a group of people with a common characteristic or interest living together within a larger society." That also seems to adequately describe a police department. When an officer a member of this community or family does not function properly, his or her well-being can become a problem that must be addressed by the community, the agency, the department. If the problem is not addressed, than the officer will continue to be dysfunctional, and the department too, will suffer. A department has to know not only what is a critical incident, but also what is a debriefing. The problem with debriefings is that many administrators do not know what they are and use the title in general terms. One dictionary defines a debriefing as in interrogation to gather information. Another dictionary says it is the receiving of information regrading a completed mission. The latter seems to be the direction departments should take when conducting debriefings. A positive debriefing should generate a good experience for the officer. He should mentally walk through his incident again with the assistance of a debriefer. He should reexamine his actions and realize that even if a mistake was made, he was working with the best information that was available to him at the time. Once a department realizes what a critical incident is, the sooner it will be able to deal with the aftermath in a realistic manner. This can be done with two groups who have experience in dealing with critical incidents. The first is the mental health professional, and the other is the peer counselor, an officer who has been through a similar incident. Remember, before becoming a peer counselor, the officer should receive training from an organization that teaches CISD and crisis intervention. If a department is going to provide immediate aftercare and conduct debriefings, it has to have a clear written policy with rules and procedures that clearly define what a critical incident is and what events will be covered as critical incidents. It must also clearly state the roles of both the professional and the peer counselor. The departmental guidelines should also include a plan for immediate response to the scene to help the officer or officers involved. This situation can best be served by the peer counselor team who has had a similar experience. This on the scene intervention does not preclude the involved officer from being debriefed by a professional. Only officers directly involved in the critical incident should be contacted to attend a mandatory debriefing. All too often during an investigation, a role reversal takes place. An officer who has been involved in a critical incident, especially a shooting, goes from being the officer in charge, to being the officer questioned by supervisors and investigators _ as if he or she were a suspect. As part of the department's policy regarding such events, investigators and supervisors should be instructed to treat the officer as a victim. All the same respect and courtesies that are extended to any other crime victims should be afforded to the involved officer. After a critical incident, the department should consider allowing the officer or officers involved, time off to process the events that took place. This time allows the officer and his or her family to make adjustments to the life changing events that can affect the entire family. In the department's written policy, it should be clearly stated that the department is aware that stress takes its toll on the involved officer and his or her family. Any services that have been provided to the officer should also be made available to the family. If a department is not prepared to deal with critical incidents, its sense of community or family will be weakened. If an officer is involved in a critical incident, he or she should be able to turn to co-workers for support in time of a crisis. If the administration and fellow officers are not supportive, then the officer will be further traumatized, and his or her thought process weakened further. This could lead him or her to make a decision to reduce his stress. His or her decision could include leaving the department. If this happens, the stress of the incident will still remain with the officer. A valuable asset to the department will be lost, and a moral obligation to the employee will not be fulfilled. |
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