The Business Case for Workplace Critical Incident Response: A Literature Review and Some Employer Examples

Attridge, Mark; Msw, Bob VandePol

doi:10.1080/15555241003761001

Cited by 24 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…These practical recommendations can be applied by leaders in the workplace who are not mental health professionals (National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine, 2003;Flynn, Flanigan and Everly, Jr., 2005). These recommendations for responding to emotional needs after trauma in the workplace are consistent with many of the principles of psychological first aid, as previously suggested by other authors (Flynn, Flanigan, and Everly, Jr., 2005;Attridge and Vandepol, 2010).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Workplace response of companies exposed to the 9/11 World Trade Center attack: a focus‐group study

North

Pfefferbaum

Hong³

et al. 2012

Disasters

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The terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 (9/11) left workplaces in pressing need of a mental health response capability. Unaddressed emotional sequelae may be devastating to the productivity and economic stability of a company’s workforce. In the second year after the attacks, 85 employees of five highly affected agencies participated in 12 focus groups to discuss workplace mental health issues. Managers felt ill prepared to manage the magnitude and the intensity of employees’ emotional responses. Rapid return to work, provision of workplace mental health services, and peer support were viewed as contributory to emotional recovery. Formal mental health services provided were perceived as insufficient. Drawing on their post-9/11 workplace experience, members of these groups identified practical measures that they found helpful in promoting healing outside of professional mental health services. These measures, consistent with many principles of psychological first aid, may be applied by workplace leaders who are not mental health professionals.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Workplace response of companies exposed to the 9/11 World Trade Center attack: a focus‐group study

North

Pfefferbaum

Hong³

et al. 2012

Disasters

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“…US employers also face financial risks associated with psychiatric disability claims, worker compensation claims, increased health and mental health costs and legal liability. 9 To address these personnel, operational and financial risks, many US employers rely on a specialized procedure known as critical incident response. 10,11 Critical Incident Response…”

Section: Physical Activity and Exercise Interventionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Workplace Disruption following Psychological Trauma: Influence of Incident Severity Level on Organizations' Post-Incident Response Planning and Execution

DeFraia¹

2016

Int J Occup Environ Med

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Cite this article as: DeFraia GS. Workplace disruption following psychological trauma: Influence of incident severity level on organizations' post-incident response planning and execution. GS DeFraiaAbstract Background: Psychologically traumatic workplace events (known as critical incidents), which occur globally, are increasing in prevalence within the USA. Assisting employers in their response is a growing practice area for occupational medicine, occupational social work, industrial psychology and other occupational health professions. Traumatic workplace events vary greatly in their level of organizational disruption.Objective: To explore whether extent of workplace disruption influences organizations' decisions for post-incident response planning and plan execution.Methods: Administrative data mining was employed to examine practice data from a workplace trauma response unit in the USA. Bivariate analyses were conducted to test whether scores from an instrument measuring extent of workplace disruption associated with organizational decisions regarding post-incident response.Results: The more severe and disruptive the incident, the more likely organizations planned for and followed through to deliver on-site interventions. Following more severe incidents, organizations were also more likely to deliver group sessions and to complete follow-up consultations to ensure ongoing worker recovery. Conclusion:Increasing occupational health practitioners' knowledge of varying levels of organizational disruption and familiarity with a range of organizational response strategies improves incident assessment, consultation and planning, and ensures interventions delivered are consistent with the level of assistance needed on both worker and organizational levels.

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“…Psychological trauma can be defined as an experience of psychological wounding caused by an event outside the usual range of human experience (Mitchell and Everly, 2001). Such events include unexpected, often life-threatening, situations that may inhibit employees' ability to respond in a normal way (Attridge and VandePol, 2010). Over recent years, various workplace-related incidents shook the world, such as terrorist attacks, civil wars, political violence, and state-supported oppression (Lemanski, 2004;Sorensen, 2012;Atvoli et al, 2013;North et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Intervention Framework to Facilitate Psychological Trauma Management in High-Risk Occupations

2020

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Various psychological trauma management programs (PTMPs) are offered to assist employees who have been exposed to a traumatic event in the workplace. There is, however, limited literature available on how employees in high-risk occupations experience these programs. This study qualitatively explored the experiences of PTMPs from the perspective of employees working in three high-risk occupations. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of the participants in order to compile a framework that could help support and improve the productivity and wellbeing of employees affected by work-related trauma. The study used a qualitative research design based on an approach informed by interpretivism and social constructivism. A multiple-case study was used as research strategy to incorporate three sectors in South Africa, namely mining, policing, and emergency medical services. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews and focus groups, and analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings across the three sectors showed effective strategies considered by participants to manage psychological trauma. These strategies include multiple counseling sessions, face-to-face counseling, regaining control, and receiving support. Strategies that were viewed as ineffective include inability of counselors to relate to the participants' work environments, lack of involvement, lack of supervisor support, unavailability of counseling and specialized skills, premature resuming of duties, and a single-dimension approach. Based on the findings, an intervention framework is proposed to address psychological trauma in high-risk occupations.

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The Business Case for Workplace Critical Incident Response: A Literature Review and Some Employer Examples

Cited by 24 publications

References 36 publications

Workplace response of companies exposed to the 9/11 World Trade Center attack: a focus‐group study

Workplace response of companies exposed to the 9/11 World Trade Center attack: a focus‐group study

Workplace Disruption following Psychological Trauma: Influence of Incident Severity Level on Organizations' Post-Incident Response Planning and Execution

An Intervention Framework to Facilitate Psychological Trauma Management in High-Risk Occupations

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