Scenarios & Checklist

A freak tornado has occurred on a very rainy Friday afternoon. This unusually powerful storm hit just as the primary grade students were sitting down to lunch in the cafeteria. The force of the storm has blown the roof off of the building and caused significant property damage to the school. Emergency response personnel have already responded and transported 13 students to 5 different regional hospitals. Your crisis response team is sitting down to plan the next intervention steps. The meeting begins with the principal informing the team that as far as he knows three students were killed and several appeared to be seriously injured. News of this freak storm is all over the airwaves and large numbers of additional media personnel and parents are arriving on the scene. Both groups are very demanding of news of what has happened. In particular, parents want to retrieve their children and take them home immediately. They are, in fact, becoming very agitated. Some of the children are very frightened and are becoming hysterical. What is your immediate crisis response? What are some of your thoughts regarding the immediate and long-term crisis intervention plan If you require additional factual information about the crisis event you may obtain such from the instructor. A car crash has occurred in front of high school on a Tuesday morning. This crash does not appear to be an accident. The parent of a child who had recently been suspended from school (and who was very angry at the school), has driven her car into a crowd of students as school was about to start. This mother also has a history of mental illness. Emergency response personnel have already responded and transported 10 students to 3 different regional hospitals. Your crisis response team is sitting down to plan the next intervention steps. The meeting begins with the principal informing the team that as far as he knows one student was killed and several appeared to be seriously injured. As news of the crash spreads throughout the community large numbers of additional media personnel and parents are arriving on the scene. Both groups are very demanding of news of what has happened. In particular, parents want to retrieve their children and take them home immediately. They are, in fact, becoming very agitated. What is your immediate crisis response? What are some of your thoughts regarding the immediate and long-term crisis intervention plan If you require additional factual information about the crisis event you may obtain such from the instructor. Crisis Intervention Checklist ____1. Mitigate crisis damage and minimize crisis exposure Crisis intervention begins with an effective emergency crisis management and response. ____2. Determine crisis facts. Use the crisis intervention fact sheet. ____3. Assess degree of impact on the school. How many students will be affected and to what degree? Can site resources manage the crisis or will district-level assistance be needed? ____4. Notify the crisis intervention team and open the crisis intervention center. This team works cooperatively with members of the Crisis Management Team. ____ (a) ____ (b) ____ (c) ____5. Set up a sign-in/sign-out system Set up a message board Give each crisis team member an ID badge so that the individual is easily identified. If not already done, notify district office of the crisis situation. District crisis response team assistance is requested through the district office. ____6. ____7. ____8. Notify other school sites that could be affected by the crisis. Contact the family(ies) of the crisis victim(s). Determine what information is to be shared with ____ (a) ____ (b) ____ (c) ____ (d) Students Parents/Community Staff Media Remember to keep in mind parental rights to confidentiality. ____9. Determine how the information is to be shared. ____ (a) ____ (b) ____ (c) ____ (d) ____ (e) ____10. ____11. If a crime has occurred, isolate victims/witnesses until law enforcement interviews are completed. Initiate the psychological triage and referral process. ____ (a) ____ (b) ____ (c) ____ (d) ____ (e) ____12. Make referral forms available to staff Designate who will maintain the referral list and where it will be kept Designate interview/counseling locations Distribute a summary of referrals to support staff Establish a procedure for self-referral Identify high-risk students and plan interventions. ____ (a) ____ (b) ____13. ____14. Written bulletins and/or letters Assemblies Phone calls Parent/Community meetings Classroom presentations/discussions Designate who will maintain the high-risk list and where it will be kept. Decide upon interventions (i.e., individual, small group, classroom). Hold a staff meeting. Computers, attendance registers and lockers. Following a student's death, delete the name from computers and attendance registers. Be sure that no one calls reporting the student absent. ____15. Debriefing held at the end of each day. ____ (a) ____ (b) ____ (c) ____ (d) ____ (e) ____ 16. ____ 17. ____ 18. Review the intervention process Plan follow-up actions Review the status of the referrals Provide mutual support Prioritize needs Schedule a morning planning session. Plan memorials. Debrief and evaluate the crisis response. Note. Adapted from “A Handbook for Crisis Intervention,” by the Los Angeles Unified School District, 1994, (Available from Los Angeles Unified School District, District Psychological Services, 6520 Newcastle Ave., Reseda, CA 91335-6230), and from “Administrative Guidelines for Crisis Intervention, ” by S. E. Brock, S. Lewis, P. Slauson, & S. Yund, 1995, pp. 22-23, (Available from Lodi Unified School District, Special Services/SELPA, 1305 E. Vine St., Lodi, CA 95240)