Suicide Prevention - Psychological First Aid/Posttraumatic Stress Management

This training is intended for Substance Use Treatment Providers only. This training is targeted towards Advanced, Intermediate, and Beginner practitioners.  



Workshop Description:

With the continued increase of overdose incidents in the state and the potential trauma experienced by survivors, the goal of this comprehensive two-day training is to prepare participants to deliver basic behavioral health disaster response skills following large-scale disasters or critical incidents, such as homicides, suicides, accidental deaths, and similarly distressing events. Participants will be presented with the evolution of efforts to assist survivors following trauma, and provided with an overview of the human stress response and how it affects the choice of interventions used with distressed individuals. The Posttraumatic Stress Management (PTSM) continuum of interventions and the eight core functions of Psychological First Aid (PFA) will be taught. 

Objectives: 

Participants will be able to: 

1. Identify historical perspectives on and responses to helping people who have experienced psychological trauma and resulting traumatic stress 
2. Describe basic features of psychological trauma, including the physiological response, and list five domains of experience that are affected by trauma 
3. Identify three different models of grief, including cultural variations 
4. Describe when each of the four models in the PTSM continuum is best applied 
5. List the eight core actions and implement Psychological First Aid, the current standard of care for trauma 
6. Conduct coping groups with trauma survivors using a nine-phase model 
7. Describe the importance of personal stress reduction strategies Explain the value of appropriate postvention and grief support services for individuals and com-munities affected by suicide 

Presented by:

Riverside Trauma Center Staff: Riverside Trauma Center’s highly-trained, licensed mental health professionals have extensive clinical experience with trauma, suicide survivors and suicide prevention.