International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc.
International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc.
By: Johnathan Gordon, Administrative Supervisor, MA 9-1-1 Liaison, EMD Manager
South Shore Emergency Communications Center
I have been in the emergency services field going on 31 years. During that time I have had the pleasure of working as a Massachusetts EMT for 15 years, a reserve police officer for 19 years, call firefighter for 12 years and last but not least a 9-1-1 public safety dispatcher for Massachusetts and the State of Florida Highway Patrol for the past 25 years. I consider myself one of very few people that have worked in all fields of public safety emergency services.
Given the amount of trauma I have seen over these past years has made me look back and say to myself. How did I do it? How have I kept myself from “The Burn Out”, Only 2 things come to mind, “love for the service” and “the brotherhood”. Without these two things, I wouldn’t have lasted ten years. In 2004 while working as a 9-1-1 dispatcher, I took a call that changed my life forever. I was working the graveyard shift; my lieutenant was down the hall booking a prisoner. At 04:10am I received a 9-1-1 call that I thought was a respiratory distress medical emergency. That quickly escalated into a murder/suicide of an entire family. The words stress and trauma had new meaning for me that day and every day since.
The next day I was invited to attend a meeting, I was told a special team was being called in to have a round table discussion with all the police officers, firefighters and myself that were working during that horrific event to help deal with the trauma occurring in our heads. The chiefs activated the Massachusetts Plymouth County Critical Incident Stress Team. Together in a room full of the strongest people you will ever meet, taught to never show weakness, taught to never be vulnerable somehow came together as a brotherhood. No badges, no handcuffs, no axes, no ladders, no headsets just faces. Breaking the barrier and talking about the incident that changed our lives forever. Because of the stress team, the messed up file cabinet in our heads was cleaned and reorganized allowing us to continue on to the next big call. Since that critical incident stress debriefing, I was involved in two other defusing’s with my brothers and sisters in emergency service over the coming years.
Today I am a proud member of the Massachusetts Plymouth County CISM Team going on 8 years now, giving back to the group of peers that made a difference in my life. Striving to be a valuable team member who can break through the barriers and help make a difference in someone else’s life.
Being a team member has been one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my career. I enter a room full of peers that have no interest what so ever in being in the room. Then I try to get a feel for these people that I have never met before. Asking them to be vulnerable and talk about what’s on their mind after a traumatic event is hard. Today’s police officers, firefighters, 9-1-1 dispatchers, emergency room doctors and nurses are taught even more today to never show weakness. Just pick yourself up and move on because time is money. As team members we are constantly training. We all go through the ICISF Assisting Individuals In Crisis and Group Crisis Intervention (GRIN) class, Suicide Prevention classes, one on one peer support classes, Battlefield to the streets classes to assist our men and women in the military transition back after deployment or just deal with day to day stresses. But the one thing that sticks in my head every time the team and I are activated is that day 16 years ago when the team convinced everyone to leave their badges at the door and just bring their faces. No ranks, no team blue, no team red, just one team. Having the ability to break that barrier was the turning moment that made the healing process start. Without it, it’s just a meaningless conversation.
As a team member it’s hard not to get a little emotional internally during a stress team call out. Sometimes I can feel my voice crack a little when I’m speaking to the group, because I care so much about each person and the role they played. Then the passion that I have to help each person kicks in. I see nothing but their faces; I see nothing but the want for the pain to go away in each of their faces as they describe the events that occurred. My only goal is to help clean up the filing cabinet in their head, reorganizing it back to some sort of chronological order then send them down the path to continue a healthy and rewarding career I was provided during my times of need.
One very important part I have learned as a stress team member is the “team meeting” after a defusing or debriefing. This is the one thing that I hope every team never overlooks. Sitting down with your fellow team members immediately after a call out is crucial in making sure your team stays strong and healthy. Many times during a team call out, parts of the conversation can trigger past memories or thoughts of incidents that have occurred during your career. Sitting down and talking about it after is paramount. The last thing any team wants is to cause emotional trauma to a team member after a defusing or debriefing. This time also gives you a chance to talk about what went well during the meeting and what if any improvements can be made to better your service to your peers.
The world we live in today brings all sorts of other stresses. There are cameras around every corner, social media comments posted on every cell phone and increased demand from our chiefs and directors. The men and women in emergency services are always going to be under a public microscope. You must remember that not everyone can be saved; many people will die during your career. As long as you can say to yourself, “today I gave 100%, I did my best” that’s all you can do. Suicide within the ranks of public safety personnel is always going to be an issue but it doesn’t have to be. Watch out for each other; be there for your fellow peers in the good times and the bad. Encourage your chiefs and directors to call a CISM team when traumatic incidents occur. Together and only together we can make a difference for the generations to come.
Johnathan E. Gordon
Plymouth County CISM Team Member
Massachusetts
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