Application and Integration of Psychological First Aid in First Responder Organizations

Abstract

First responders are exposed to many potentially traumatic events throughout their careers. Given the risk of adverse mental and physical health outcomes secondary to frequent trauma exposure, access to culturally-sensitive, evidence-informed early intervention is paramount. Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) and components therein (e.g., Critical Incident Stress Debriefing, peer support) represent the most commonly utilized early interventions within first responder organizations. Limited research has evaluated these models, and evaluation of early interventions presents many challenges due to characteristics of first responder cultures and organizational demands and constraints. Psychological First Aid (PFA) is a widely endorsed and promising evidence-informed early intervention model grounded in research on trauma recovery and resilience. This chapter examines the theoretical underpinnings and core actions of PFA and describes the potentially diverse applications of PFA within first responder organizations and concludes by discussing recommendations and future directions.