Toolkit with Report Form - Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic ...

Considerations & resources
The information below includes explanations, considerations and resources
for responding to a critical incident and provides greater detail about the
critical elements to consider in the development of your plan.
Section five
Purpose
Having a Critical Incident Response Plan in
place will assist your program when a Tier
One critical incident occurs and it is essential
to act quickly to:
◗ Stabilize services
◗ Support staff, volunteers, clients and
others directly affected
The pace and manner of your initial response
will set the tone for recovery and potentially
reduce stress levels and opportunities for
mistakes.
Assuring the continuity of services is an
early and essential part of this process.
Tools like the Continuity of Operations
Charts ( © HollyHartConsulting.com 2010),
located in the Appendix, are available to
provide guidance to programs updating their
existing plans or exploring the development
of a Critical Incident Response Plan. It is a
very comprehensive document. You do not
have to address all of the elements listed.
It is meant to stimulate some thought and
discussion at your program.
A Critical Incident Response Plan is similar
to a safety plan in that it is a “living”
document that needs consistent, regular
review to update contact information,
improve response plans (especially if there
are lessons learned), and refresh staff
and volunteers’ recollection about how to
respond when a critical incident occurs.
When is it a crisis?
A crisis is a critical incident or traumatic
event that pushes individuals and, sometimes,
communities beyond their capacity to function
on a day-to-day basis. For purposes of
reporting critical incidents to PCADV, the
following additional definitions apply:
◗ Tier One Incidents – Major incidents,
such as domestic violence fatalities, near
fatalities, or natural deaths of shelter
residents.
◗ Tier Two Incidents – Other incidents,
such as fires, floods, bed bugs, or no
heat in shelter that disrupt your program’s
continuity of services and may attract
unwanted media attention.
issues to consider
There are several specific issues to consider
when developing a Critical Incident Response
Plan and/or responding to a critical
incident. A team approach and direct lines
of communication with clear documentation
are recommended to provide structure
during a situation that can become chaotic.
Confidentiality also requires dedicated and
serious consideration in such situations.
When Crisis Strikes | Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence | 2012 page 19