Critical Incident Stress Debriefing for Health Care Workers

Abstract

A critical incident may be defined as a life-threatening crisis that requires rescue or emergency care. These incidents evoke strong emotional responses from health care workers. Some of the responses produced are normal and some are pathological stress and grief reactions. The Critical Incident Stress Debriefing process (CISD) is a model designed to mitigate the impact of such incidents on health care workers, to facilitate their return to routine functioning, and to prevent pathological responses to the trauma that is an inherent aspect of their profession. CISD is relied upon by hospital and emergency rescue professionals throughout the United States. The process was observed at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center/Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix. This article examines the development of CISD and explores its implementation at St. Joseph's. Interviews conducted with health care workers who participated in the debriefing process following critical incident deaths are excerpted. Implications for death educators/counselors are discussed.