In this 15th World Congress Breakout Session, Dwight Polk, Owner & Trauma Therapist, Freestate Behavioral Health Associates, LLC, Baltimore, MD discusses characteristics of public safety personnel, symptoms of stress in emergency providers and the concept of administrative betrayal, as well as effective treatment modalities for emergency providers.

Promote awareness of the CISM response to a active shooter incident in the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill, Pittsburgh, Pa. and Demonstrate the challenges the Pittsburgh CISM team had in responding and the benefits of preplanning.

First responders are used to being there for the worst days in other people’s lives – but what happens when they are temporarily overwhelmed and in need of immediate intervention? When a debriefing or peer support is not enough? The On-Site Academy at Windy Hill Farm is a non-profit residential application of the ICISF model for both CISM and Peer Support.

We will discuss our approach to this traumatic event, the network of people who were involved, and the innovations in trauma response that we initiated to help support healing and recovery for those affected by this horrific human disaster. And finally we’ll talk about lessons learned and the protocols we have established for responding to mass casualties and major disaster situations in the future.

This presentations explains how the Anne Arundel County Crisis Intervention Team developed a Strategic Critical Incident Action Plan following the Annapolis Capital/Gazette shooting; how the Anne Arundel County Crisis Intervention Team utilized CISM interventions and when they were applicable in assisting those affected by the Annapolis Capital/Gazette shooting; and how the Anne Arundel County Crisis Intervention Team utilized outside resources to assist with interventions for the Annapolis Capital Gazette shooting.

In this 15th World Congress Breakout Session, Jon Kayne, Professor of Clinical Counseling and Psychology, Bellevue University, Bellevue, NE discusses: Returning veterans, whether recently returned or returned 70 years ago, often have difficulty readjusting to civilian life, and some never do readjust. The issues range from simply feeling that they do not fit in with their families and communities to others who suffer from severe traumatic stress symptoms.

This is the story of what the Saskatchewan Fire Service CISM Team did in the hours, days, weeks and months after the bus crash to provide the best possible psychological and emotional support for the emergency responders in the aftermath of an incident that was felt around the world.

In this 15th World Congress Breakout Session, Dennis Potter, Social Worker, Kantu Consultants, Grand Rapids, MI discusses:The Post Action Staff Support model is designed to accomplish three major objectives; the first is to actually “critique” the performance of the individuals and the team during the response to the event; the second is to evaluate the impact of the response on the team, and thirdly to remind them to take care of themselves as well.