Critical Incidents/Death of a Unit Member/Pre-Exposure Preparation Steps

1.  Critical Incidents

I.  Overview

 General Considerations

Critical incidents are events outside the normal experience of people that pose actual or perceived threats of injury or exposure to death that can overwhelm both an individual's and organization's coping resources.  Examples of such critical incidents include:

• Natural disasters.
• Acts of terrorism.
• Mass casualty accidents.
• Acts of violence (with and without fatalities).
• Observed traumatic deaths.
• Aircraft accidents/mishaps.

First responders (e.g., medics, fire fighters, law enforcement, or a agency member when the incident occurs at the worksite) are particularly vulnerable to this source of intense distress.

Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) teams or services exist  to help individuals recover from or remain functioning despite the potential negative effects of critical incidents.  CISM potentially enables people to understand the normal reactions to traumatic events and to promote use of effective coping skills.  This is accomplished through peer counseling, education, group meetings, command consultation, and on-scene supportive services.

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