The Responder Alliance

The core elements of stress injuries and the principles of psychological first aid are fundamentally the same. Below, explore the base principles and research of stress injuries.

Access resource pertaining specifically to different responder cultures below

Law Enforcement Resources
 

SAR/Mountain Rescue Resources

Wildland Fire Resources

Urban Fire/EMS Resources

Ski Patrol/Snow Science Community Resources

Psychiatry: Interpersonal and Biological Processes, Vol. 70, Iss. 4

Five Elements of Psychological First Aid: Hobfol, et al

Once the foundations of practice had been established, other major agencies and entities followed suit. Combat and Operational Stress First Aid was built on these same 5 elements to be used in theater, and represented a significant innovation in regards to implementation of a practical intervention that could be used for the individual and group following significant and near-miss events to mitigate the effects of traumatic stress on the soldiers in combat.
Combat and Operational Stress First Aid Manual

PDF
Once established in the military context, several authors involved in the formation of Combat and Operational Stress First Aid went on to support the calibration of it’s use for firefighters and EMS. See below.

Psychological Treatments that Cause Harm

(PDF)
A review of CISD

The Sharp End Podcast

Psychology First Aid – Episode 34

Too Much, Too Ugly – The Trauma Contamination

Video Link
Sponsored by Responder Strong and Colorado Springs Police Department this program, created by Dr. John Nicoletti, is a clinical look at the cumulative effects of witnessing traumatic events as first responders and how one can cope with these situations. This video was produced jointly by El Paso County Video Services and Colorado Springs Fire Department.

Disaster Psychological First Aid

NCTSN: Learning Center
A modular approach for all-comers to respond to overwhelming traumatic stress by re-establishing safety and decreasing arousal at the time of the stressful event in order to mitigate the formation of stress injuries. This intervention is supportive, intuitive and can be used by everyone to support folks in their own recovery when exposed to significant and near miss events.
Although the term is not new, psychological first aid was first established as a national intervention by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network in Partnership with the Center for PTSD. This collaboration was the first to offer a certification for those responding to disaster.

Anxiety, Panic and PTSD

www.youtube.com
Presented during the National Outdoor Leadership School Summit