Authorpreneur Dashboard – Richard A Crino

Richard A Crino

Finding Common Ground

Self-Help

The need to assess the mental status and intentions of individuals has become a routine requirement of law enforcement officers nationwide. More often than not, they are the first responders in situations involving a person experiencing a mental health crisis. As a key component of situational awareness, officers need to quickly recognize when a person is experiencing a mental heath crisis, and have the verbal skills necessary to ensure both officer safety and the safety of an individual in crisis. This ground breaking book, provides information on the various mental health disorders, treatment options, violence risk assessment, gun violence, innovative verbal de-escalation skills, and situational awareness. Also includes, self-help information on stress management, officer resiliency, critical incident recovery and emotional survival. In his work, Richard Crino, co-designed Rhode Island’s first crisis intervention program for law enforcement officers known as CRT.

Book Bubbles from Finding Common Ground

First Responders and Traumatic Events

First responders such as police, firefighters, EMTs and military personnel are exposed to death, shootings, child deaths, and human suffering as part of their regular duties. It is well known that being exposed to traumatic events can cause what are known as emotional aftershocks or stress reactions once the event is concluded. These stress reactions are normal and should subside over time. Experiencing stress reactions such as nightmares, headaches, questioning one's performance and intrusive thoughts of the event are common. The good news is that there are ways to reduce the emotional, psychological and physical impact of stress reactions. The following stress reduction tips have helped many first responders "bounce back" from traumatic events.

First Responders and Traumatic Events

Understanding the impact of traumatic events on both the human brain and body is key in helping first responders "bounce back" from traumatic events. It is perfectly normal and expected that after being exposed to death, assaults, shootings, child deaths and human suffering individuals will experience what is termed emotional aftershocks or stress reactions. Stress reactions such as nightmares, intrusive thoughts, questioning one's performance, memory loss, headaches, guilt and anger are common. The good news is that most first responders as well as the general public will not develop a psychiatric disorder such as PTSD after being involved in a traumatic event. Understanding that stress reactions are normal and will subside over time is the first step towards recovery. The psychological wellness tips outlined in this chapter are highly effective for police officers, firefighters, EMT's, military personnel and the general public. This is information helpful for family members as well.

Finding Common Ground

Every day while performing their duties, law enforcement officers come into contact with individuals experiencing mental health crises. Responding to a person on the street throwing a brick through a window, or an inmate requiring restraint for suicidal actions, is a common occurrence. Officers are frequently involved in challenging and potentially dangerous situations involving people in crisis. As a registered nurse specializing in behavioral health and crisis intervention, I’ve dedicated a good portion of my professional career to training law enforcement officers in mental health awareness and crisis intervention. I decided to specialize in this area after looking at the lack of training information on mental illness provided by many law enforcement organizations nationwide. This made little sense to me, as interacting with the public and providing crisis management is a daily expectation of the job. Finding Common Ground provides innovative verbal de-escalation techniques, mental illness awareness ,officer safety education and stress reduction tips to assist officers in maintaining psychological wellness.

Click Follow to receive emails when this author adds content on Bublish

We use cookies so you get the best experience on our website. By using our site, you are agreeing to our Cookie Policy. ACCEPT COOKIES