The Stark County Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Team

FREE 24-HOUR EMERGENCY ACCESS – CALL COLEMAN CRISIS AT 330-452-6000

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About Us

The Stark County Critical Incident Stress Management Team is made up of trained professionals from the mental health and emergency service professions.

Mission

The mission of the Stark County Critical Incident Stress Management Team is to minimize the potentially harmful stress-related symptoms associated with critical incidents.

Goals

The goals of receiving CISM services are to:

  • Promote effective responses to stressful events.
  • Reduce harmful effects following a critical incident by working with those impacted soon after the event.
  • Accelerate the healing process.

What Is a Critical Incident?

A critical incident is any event, often sudden or unexpected, that can cause significant distress and overwhelms a person’s typical coping abilities. Examples of critical incidents can include:

  • Natural disasters
  • Human-made disasters
  • Serious injury or death of a person
  • Multi-victim incidents
  • Fires
  • Industry accidents
  • Victim of a crime
  • Shooting
  • Any powerful or traumatic event

What Is Critical Incident Stress?

Critical incident stress refers to the broad range of responses that occur after a stressful experience. After a critical incident, one may experience strong emotional or physical reactions immediately after the incident. Sometimes these reactions can also occur a few hours, days, or even weeks later.

When To Call

During or after an incident where the potential for critical incident stress may occur or has already occurred. Even though the event may be over, a person may now be experiencing or may experience later, some strong physical, psychological behavioral or spiritual reactions to the traumatic event. No one is immune from these reactions. It can be common to experience some of these symptoms.
Common symptoms of critical incident stress include:

  • fatigue
  • upset stomach
  • nausea
  • confusion
  • poor attention
  • disturbed thinking
  • difficulty making decisions
  • disturbed sleep
  • guilt
  • denial
  • feeling overwhelmed
  • anger/irritable
  • grief
  • fear
  • nightmares
  • panic
  • emotional shock

Who To Call

Requests for CISM support may come from anyone in the community, human resource departments, law enforcement, firefighters, emergency medical services, corrections, hospitals, emergency management personnel, or dispatch.

Available Services

Services available from the Stark County CISM Team are FREE and can be accessed by calling Coleman Crisis at 330-452-6000. Services can be provided to any community member or first responder.

Defusing Session

A session held with a small group of people relatively soon after a critical incident.

Demobilization

A brief stress management intervention immediately after a critical incident. Provides basic education to personnel serving as first responders as they are released from the scene of an emergency. Serves as decompression and reminder to meet basic needs.

Individual Interventions

One-on-one intervention is referred to as emotional first aid and differs from therapy. Individual interventions can occur after a critical incident or whenever requested.

Follow Up/Referral

Connect individuals with additional services and/or resources as necessary because of a critical incident.

Looking for additional resources and materials?

Contact us for additional materials.