Crisis Intervention is NOT psychotherapy; rather, it is a specialized acute emergency mental health intervention which requires specialized training. As physical first aid is to surgery, crisis intervention is to psychotherapy. Thus, crisis intervention is sometimes called “emotional first aid”. This program is designed for teach participants the fundamentals of, and a specific protocol for, individual crisis intervention.

This course offers core knowledge for anyone involved in Peer Support and crisis intervention. This includes people in the fields of Emergency Services, Public Safety,  Law Enforcement, Military, Disaster Response, Education, Employee Assistance, Healthcare, Homeland Security, Mental Health, Spiritual Care, and Business & Industry.

Program Highlights: 

• Psychological crisis and psychological crisis intervention
• Resistance, resiliency, recovery continuum
• Critical incident stress management
• Evidence-based practice
• Basic crisis communication techniques
• Common psychological and behavioral crisis reactions
• Putative and empirically-derived mechanisms
• SAFER-Revised model
• Suicide intervention
• Risks of iatrogenic “harm”

Successful completion of the Approved Instructor Candidate Program will allow you to teach this curriculum to others. Continuing education will be required to maintain your instructor status.

• Completion of the following ICISF courses as taught by ICISF or by an approved ICISF instructor. (Copies of certificates of completion are required to accompany the application.)
  • Group Crisis Intervention
  • Assisting Individuals in Crisis
  • Advanced Group Crisis Intervention
• Minimum of three years critical incident / traumatic stress experience.
• A letter of recommendation from a local, state or regional CISM team or agency / institution dated within three months of application due date.*
• A letter of endorsement from a local, state or regional CISM coordinator or clinical director dated within three months of application due date.** At least one of the letters of recommendation must attest to the instructor candidate’s teaching ability. If neither of the aforementioned letters can do so, a third letter must be submitted.
• Active membership on a crisis intervention team.
• Current ICISF membership.
• A copy of a current CV or resume.
• Official course application form.
• A brief statement outlining:
  1. Your crisis intervention/CISM experience.
  2. Your instructional experience.
  3. Reasons for applying for ICISF Approved Instructor Training.