Schools are where most of us have spent some considerable time. Most people can recall traumatic events which have happened either in the school or to students and staff. At these times, the school community occasionally needs outside support to provide a helping hand to those who are affected. The term psychological first aid refers to humane, supportive and practical help to fellow human beings suffering serious crisis events (WHO, 2011). Such psychological first aid has been found to be more beneficial than critical incident stress debriefing.
Cairnmillar has an established reputation for providing timely training and education for schools and was the one of the first organisations to provide programs for bullying in Schools.
Now Cairnmillar plans to lead the way in providing training and education in psychological first aid for school communities. Experienced staff who have been teachers or principals and who are also psychologists or counsellors will provide support directly or via the training of school staff.
Perhaps you are called upon as a staff member or volunteer to help in a major disaster, or you find yourself at the scene of an accident where people are hurt. Perhaps you are a teacher or health worker talking with someone from your community who has just witnessed the violent death of a loved one. Training in psychological first aid will help you to know the most supportive things to say and do for people who are very distressed. It will also give you information on how to approach a new situation safely for yourself and others, and not to cause harm by your actions.
The training will draw on the experience of our staff and also published guidelines for psychological first aid.
World Health Organization, War Trauma Foundation and World Vision
International (2011). Psychological first aid: Guide for field workers. WHO: Geneva.
Educating Practitioners