International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc.
International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc.
By: Braxton Morrison, NRP, CCISM
Co-Founder | President | Team Coordinator
Benton County (IA) CISM Team
I took my first Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Class in 2016. I was a fairly new first responder with less than a year in law enforcement and just shy of 2 years in emergency medical services (EMS) as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). I knew the basis of what CISM was, but not any actual in-depth knowledge or how it really worked. I did however know that first responders experienced difficult calls that left them with emotional traumas that sometimes caused spirals into worsening tragedies for them and their families. I wanted to be a part of preventing that.
Recently after I became ‘trained’ in CISM, I connected with another first responder who went through the CISM training about 2 years earlier. In 2017 we loosely formed an unofficial CISM team for our local county. We did a handful of debriefs and defusing’s over the next 2 years until the end of 2019, when we had multiple critical incidents in our county. We ended up doing, or should have done about 5 interventions in 4 or so months.
After that, we decided to formalize the Benton County CISM Team and become officially verified with ICISF showing that we possessed the education, resources, and necessary procedures of a well-managed team. We wanted to display professionalism and truly be there for the responders in our county. Utilizing the verification process through ICISF was a phenomenal way to do that and as a “verified” team, we would be listed in the ICISF team database.
Since formalizing the team, we have had 7 other members join, four first responders from communities within our response area and three representatives from a crisis response agency and human services agency in the County. Since March of 2020 we have facilitated 7 interventions assisting nearly 50 first responders. Two of the interventions provided were for the deaths of minors in tragic accidents less than a week apart in the same service area. Unless you have facilitated an intervention, it is truly hard to know how thankful the recipients are for you providing the service. Being there, listening and giving them the opportunity to know they were not and are not alone in the way they are feeling.
My team is based out of a small community in Iowa, the entire county only has around 15,000 people. Everyone knows everyone here. If you live in a small community like this, or any community and have been contemplating joining or creating a CISM team, do it! Waiting to join or create a team will only delay your first responders from getting the immediate crisis intervention care they need to continue providing the services we rely on them for.
Your role as a Crisis Interventionist can literally keep responders in the job they love and keep them going home to their families every night. We provide a safe environment with their peers who have experienced the same trauma and offer safe and efficient coping mechanisms versus the unhealthy alternatives. You will truly make a difference in someone’s life by giving them this opportunity.
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International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc is a 501(c)3 Non Profit