FDNY Crisis Counseling : Innovative Responses to 9/11 Firefighters, Families, and Communities

by Greene, Paul; Kane, Dianne; Christ, Grace H.; Lynch, Sallie; Corrigan, Malachy P.

• ISBN13: 9780471714255
• ISBN10: 0471714259
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-04-07
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

Advance praise for FDNY Crisis Counseling "This riveting book . . . underscores the need for creativity, modesty, clinical acumen and cultural sensitivity in response to trauma. One ends up in awe both of the lost and surviving firefighters and their courageous families. And the reader emerges with a profound respect for the extraordinary CSU staff who literally came to their rescue." --Paul A. Kurzman, PhD, ACSW, Professor and Chair of Work, Employment, and Rehabilitation Programs at the Hunter College School of Social Work of the City University of New York "This remarkable book comprises a major contribution to the crisis treatment literature. Overall, many will benefit from this careful, well documented explication of an approach to disaster counseling over time." --Katherine Shear, MD, Professor of Psychiatry in Social Work, Columbia University School of Social Work Developing and implementing effective crisis counseling techniques in response to mass trauma Shortly after the September 11th attacks, as the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) started their recovery work in the ruins of the World Trade Center, a large-scale mental health response within the FDNY swung into action, initiated by staff in the department's Counseling Services Unit (CSU). FDNY Crisis Counseling: Innovative Responses to 9/11 Firefighters, Families, and Communities tells the story of this ongoing response from the perspective of those who put it into practice. Using narrative, case studies, and other real-world examples, this unique new resource lays out a roadmap for applying innovative approaches to disaster response and the prevention of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. The pioneering efforts of the CSU present a model for all mental health professionals working with organizations, communities, individuals, and families. * A brief history of the CSU * FDNY culture and the impact of 9/11 * Shaping services to meet 9/11 needs * Providing help to families, including widows and children * Partnering with other agencies and cargivers to deliver services

Author Biography

PAUL GREENE, PHD, is Associate Professor and Chair of the Psychology Department at Iona College. He was also a Firehouse Clinician for the Counseling Services Unit of the FDNY.

DIANNE KANE, DSW, CGP, is Assistant Director of the FDNY Counseling Services Unit, and an adjunct Associate Professor at Hunter College School of Social Work.

GRACE CHRIST, DSW, is Associate Professor at the Columbia University School of Social Work, Director of the Social Work Leadership Development Awards Program of the Project on Death in America, and Director of the FDNY/Columbia University Family Assessment and Guidance Program.

SALLIE LYNCH, MA, is a cultural anthropologist, and was the program coordinator of the FDNY/Columbia University Family Assessment and Guidance Program.

MALACHY CORRIGAN, MA, RN, has been the Director of the FDNY Counseling Services Unit since 1982.

Table of Contents

Preface	xiii
Acknowledgments	xix
Chapter 1 Introduction	1	(9)
Chapter 2 Coping with Chaos	10	(23)
The Counseling Service Unit Pre-9/11	11	(5)
The CSU Response to 9/11	16	(2)
Assessing the Community	18	(3)
Receiving Outside Help	21	(2)
CSU Expansion	23	(1)
Connecting with the Firefighting Community	23	(1)
Connecting with Families	24	(2)
Family Liaisons	26	(3)
Moving Forward	29	(1)
Defining a Timeline for Your Community	30	(3)
Chapter 3 Understanding Culture	33	(35)
Cultural Identity	35	(2)
Applying Cultural Identity to Intervention	37	(2)
Firefighting History and Tradition in New York	39	(6)
Modern Firefighting in New York City	45	(2)
The FDNY as a Paramilitary Organization	47	(1)
Everyday Life in the Firehouse	48	(2)
Rituals and Rank	50	(4)
Common Bonds	54	(2)
Family Ties That Bind	56	(4)
Heroics, Media, and Politics	60	(3)
The Brotherhood and Its Loss	63	(5)
Chapter 4 Shaping Services to Meet Emerging Needs	68	(30)
Assessment and Planning	69	(5)
How the Nature of the Event Shapes the Response	74	(5)
Listening and Responding to Emerging Needs	79	(3)
Strengthening the CSU Identity	82	(1)
Establishing Provider Networks	83	(4)
Building a Staff: Both Peer and Professional	87	(3)
Care for the Caregivers	90	(5)
Keeping the Machinery Going: Funding and Resource Development	95	(1)
Thoughts for the Future	96	(2)
Chapter 5 Providing Help in the Workplace: The Firehouse Clinician Project	98	(38)
The Mindset of FDNY Firefighters	98	(2)
The Intervention: Placing Clinicians in Firehouses	100	(3)
The Population: Defining Who Needed Services	103	(3)
Theoretical Orientation	106	(1)
Intervention Goal	107	(4)
Selecting and Training Firehouse Clinicians	111	(4)
The First Visit to the Firehouse	115	(5)
Revamping Professional Boundaries	120	(5)
Preparing to Be a Firehouse Clinician	125	(9)
Termination Countertransference: The Time to Leave the Firehouse	134	(2)
Chapter 6 Modifying Psychotherapy for Individuals	136	(18)
Individual Psychotherapy with Firefighters	136	(4)
The Parameters of Individual Treatment	140	(3)
Choosing Individual Psychotherapy	143	(6)
Implications for Psychotherapy Technique	149	(4)
Summary	153	(1)
Chapter 7 Finding Comfort in Groups	154	(26)
Why Group Intervention?	155	(1)
Therapy Groups versus Support Groups	156	(1)
Trauma Groups	156	(3)
On-Site Interventions	159	(3)
Office-Based Groups: Middle and Later Phase	162	(2)
Importance of Homogeneity in Group Formation	164	(1)
Traumatic Bereavement Groups	165	(11)
Single-Session Groups	176	(2)
A Final Word about Groups	178	(2)
Chapter 8 Providing a Home-Based Therapeutic Program for Widows and Children	180	(32)
Understanding the Experience for Mothers and Children	181	(6)
Developing CSU Services for Bereaved Families	187	(2)
Creating a Preliminary Model for the Family Program	189	(2)
Preliminary Trauma, Grief, Reconstitution Model	191	(5)
Implementing the Family Program	196	(2)
Intervention Goals for Children and Adolescents	198	(1)
Intervention Goals for Adults	199	(1)
Therapeutic Approaches	199	(8)
Lessons Learned	207	(5)
Chapter 9 Strengthening Connections within the Family at Home	212	(19)
The Impact of Trauma on Relationships	215	(2)
Reaching Out to Families	217	(2)
Developing an Effective Intervention	219	(1)
The Couples Connection Weekend	220	(8)
Lessons Learned	228	(3)
Chapter 10 Assisting Retirees in Transition	231	(15)
When the Losses of 9/11 Were Compounded by the Loss of a Job	231	(3)
The Retiree Experience	234	(2)
The Stay Connected Program	236	(7)
Lessons Learned	243	(3)
Chapter 11 Conclusion	246	(11)
Protracted Time Lines	248	(1)
Community of Grievers	249	(1)
Crisis Counseling over the Long Haul	250	(1)
Public versus Private Mourning	251	(2)
The Value of Pre-planning	253	(2)
Posttraumatic Growth	255	(2)
Postscript	257	(2)
References	259	(6)
Index	265