Creating and Maintaining a Multi School Based CISM Team from the Ground Up: “How To” Ideas

1. Creating and Maintaining a Multi School Based CISM Team from the Ground Up: “How To” Ideas

2. Grant Wood Area Education AgencyCedar Rapids, Iowa ICISF 9th World Congress on Stress, Trauma and Coping February 14, 2007 Baltimore, Maryland

3. HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY !

4. Agenda for Today • Welcome and Introductions • Who We Are and Where We’re From • Learning Objectives for Today • Establishing The Need for a School Based CISM Team • CISM School Based Toolkit • Student Funerals • Emergency Preparedness • Team Maintenance • Closing Activity

5. Who We Are • An 80+ member ICISF trained team composed of school social workers, school psychologists, educational consultants, school counselors, nurses, administrators, clergy and pastoral care staff

6. Presenters • Katie Goddard, LISW • Kelly Jones, LISW • Katy Lee, LISW • Sidney Lutz, LISW • Shirley Pike, MA, NCSP • Leslee Sandberg, Ph.D. • Nancy Veldhuizen, LISW

7. Where We’re From

23. By the end of our session today, participants will be able to: 1.Describe a process for establishing and maintaining a school based CISM team with a mission, vision and guiding principles. 2.Develop additional printed materials for use in their own school setting: what does a CISM tool kit contain?

24. 3.Identify the potential problems and solutions of holding a student funeral in the school building. 4.Develop an emergency preparedness self-assessment for use in their own school setting.

25. Establishing the Need for a School Based CISM Team “There are two kinds of schools….those that have had a crisis and those that will.” -Mary Schoenfeldt of Schoenfeldt and Associates

26. In the beginning…….. • Prior to 1999: informal response • 1999 student death at track practice • Met with hospital, Red Cross, Abbe Center for Community Mental Health • Formed an Advisory Committee: first task was to define our need and develop guiding principles, mission, and vision.

27. Need Statement • Grant Wood AEA is aware that difficult and critical situations occur in the lives of students and staff. • Some effects of traumatic stress are: disruption of teaching and learning, deterioration of job performance, relationship problems, depression.

28. CISM was chosen as our intervention model.

29. Traumatic Stress • Critical incidents are intense events that can rapidly overwhelm the coping skills of students and staff exposed to them. • Critical incidents can set the stage for both critical incident stress and post-traumatic stress disorder.

30. Goals and Outcomes of Interventions • Reduce stress. • Stabilize. • Facilitate returning to a more normal routine. • Provide access to a more intensive or higher level of care, as indicated.

31. Critical Incident Stress Management • Prevention of critical incident stress. • Mitigation of critical incident stress. • Intervention to assist in recovery from critical incident stress. • Acceleration of recovery whenever possible. • Restoration to function. • Maintenance of school personnel and student health and welfare.

32. CISM Interventions • Pre-incident education, preparation • Assessment • Strategic Planning • Large Group Crisis Intervention: • Demobilizations (large groups of rescue/ recovery) • Respite/Rehab Sectors • Crisis Management Briefings (CMB)

33. CISM Interventions (cont.) • Small Group Crisis Intervention: • Defusings (small groups) • Small group CMB • “Debriefing” • One-on-one crisis intervention, including individual PFA • Family CISM • Organizational/ Community intervention, consultation • Pastoral crisis intervention • Follow-up and referral for continued care

34. And then……. Community organizations funded our first training: School Crisis Response (Barb Ertl) • Grant Wood AEA CISM Team formed • Guiding Principles • Mission • Vision

35. Grant Wood AEA CISM Guiding Principles All schools in Grant Wood AEA deserve access, in a timely manner, to critical incident support. In coping with traumatic events, greater positive impact can best be achieved through equal partnerships between school and local community resources. Asking for community support is a healthy and productive response to crisis.

36. Involving the broader community is an effective way to address issues of cultural diversity. A written intervention plan and prior practice can assist in easing chaos. Response plans tailored to each school district or building best meet the needs of the staff and students.

37. Consistent training and preparation of local community-wide teams provides the most effective crisis response. • Since students relate best to people they know, it is preferable that local school staff are trained in crisis intervention to facilitate the initial response and provide long – term support.

38. Providing post-vention support for crisis response teams is a critical part of a traumatic event response plan. The social / emotional development and learning that occurs when coping with a traumatic event are important elements in the education of our students. Providing proactive crisis prevention is a critical part of a traumatic event response plan.

39. The Team’s Mission Defines the scope of the work And How it will be done

40. Mission Statement • To support schools within the Grant Wood Area Education Agency in coping with traumatic events by providing trained, local community response teams.

41. Mission Fulfillment • Create and facilitate effective community partnerships. • Promote safety and security in schools by linking with other crisis prevention and management efforts. • Provide training and follow-up for the local community response teams. • Provide schools access to crisis intervention response teams that use the ICISF model.

42. After that…… • Developed GWAEA CISM Operations Manual with team membership application • Became a registered ICISF team • Individual members took additional ICISF training

43. Spreading the Word! • Created a brochure • Spoke to School Superintendents • Informational “ How to Contact the Team” flyers sent to all schools • Internal communications within our agency • Word of mouth from schools receiving our services

44. Vision is the preferred future of the team

45. Vision Statement • Schools within Grant Wood AEA will have an effective, integrated community-wide response to a school crisis, based on a plan that provides access to local resources. • There will be a systematic, consistent approach utilized by response teams. • Community resources will be organized and easily accessed by school personnel.

46. Your need statement

47. What is Your Team’s Mission? A mission statement defines the scope of your work and how it will be done: The mission of____________ is to _________________ by________.

48. Team Organization

49. Coordinating Agency • Grant Wood AEA serves as the coordinating agency for the Grant Wood AEA CISM team. • Grant Wood AEA CISM team serves schools and districts in the Grant Wood AEA service area.

50. Comprehensive CISM Team • Voluntary partnership between area schools and GWAEA, with linkages to local team and community groups. • Comprised of trained individuals who fulfill the role of either peer support or mental health professional as defined by the ICISF model. • Additional support provided by community spiritual leaders trained in the CISM model.