Critical Incident Stress Debriefing Following an Emergent Situation
Published: 25 March 2018
Published: 25 March 2018
It will be recognised as the date of one of the deadliest school shootings in US history.
On that day, in an area of southern Florida, a gunman entered a regional high school area and opened fire on children and their teachers. The event occurred just prior to the end of the school day and when the shooting was over the citizens of Parkland, Florida had suffered the unimaginable loss of 17 citizens; 13 high school students, and 4 adults who gave their lives while shielding others from certain death.
The bodies of the victims that were fatally shot along with most of the other children and adults who were seriously wounded were taken to Broward Health North Hospital near Parkland Florida where the incident occurred. The police department successfully arrested the alleged gunman within two hours of the incident and he too was transported to Broward Health North Hospital.
The same medical team that met the victims and family members were also charged with providing care and comfort to the alleged perpetrator of this heinous act.
For several hours as the story was told on all the major television stations, I watched and wondered how this could happen in a school located in the heart of suburban America.
As the hours passed I began to think about the medical team comprised of nurses, physicians, first responders and students in Broward Health North; how can we as healthcare professionals recognise their loss, thank them for their expertise and allow them opportunities to express their grief?
I believe that the answer to this difficult question is for nurses to work with healthcare leaders as advocates for the provision of critical incident stress debriefing sessions for healthcare teams that participate in critical incident situations.
Davis (2013), defines a ‘critical incident’ as an unforeseen death in the daily delivery of care, a grave injury from a shooting or stabbing, a perceived physical or psychological threat to the health and safety of an individual, or community regardless of the type of incident.
The professionals that are at risk from post-traumatic stress disorder following such an event include emergency, public safety personnel (responders) or employees, who will experience a dramatic or profound change or disruption in their physical (physiological) or psychological functioning.
Critical incident stress debriefings (CISD) involve specific techniques that are designed to allow ‘first responders’ to cope with the physical and physiological effects of traumatic events.
Debriefing sessions allow participants a ‘safe place’ to express their anger, grief and sorrow related to the events that they witnessed.
It is important to note that the benefits of CISD are maximised if they occur within 24-72 hours post-trauma. The longer length of time between the experience of the trauma and CISD lengthens, the less effective CISD becomes (Davis, 1993; Mitchell, 1988).
Davis (2013) suggests implementing the following seven strategies into the process of debriefing emergency responders:
Provision 3.2 of the Australian Nurses Code of Conduct (March, 2018) addresses the nurse’s responsibility to create a positive, culturally safe work environment through ‘role modelling, and supporting the rights, dignity and safety of others, including people and colleagues.’
I would ask that each of you assess the availability of CISD services in your healthcare settings. We must never lose sight of our responsibility to our colleagues who by the nature of their setting become first responders to unimaginable tragedies. We honour their contributions by recognising their needs and providing the post-care that they will need to continue to serve the most vulnerable victims of our communities.
Judith Paré joined the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA) in May, 2017 as the Director of Nursing Education/Workforce Quality and Safety. In 2014, Judith earned her Doctorate of Philosophy in the field of Nursing Education Capella University. Prior to joining the MNA she was Dean of the School of Nursing & Behavioral Sciences at Becker College in Worcester Massachusetts. She is an experienced educator in academic and continuing education settings. Judith is a member of more than ten professional nursing organisations and she devotes much of her time as an advocate for the Rural Nurse Organisation. Her expertise include curriculum design, assessment and evaluation in nursing and healthcare. Her research areas of expertise in rural healthcare and specifically the lived experiences of the rural nurse generalist. Judith is a published author and a national speaker in the field of rural nursing. Her recent writings includes: Montgomery, S, Sutton A & Paré, J 2017, ‘Rural Nursing & Synergy’, Online Journal of Rural Nursing & Health Care, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 87-99. http://dx.doi.org/10.14574/ojrnhc.v17i1.431 See Educator Profile