ISSUES AND PRACTICES.pdf - The Counseling Team International

Bringing in peer supporters from other facilities to conduct debriefings after criticalincidents as opposed to using peers from the facility in which the incident occurred.Conducting outreach to family members.The variation in how the programs operate and the services they provide may seem discouraging:The lack of uniformity makes it difficult for corrections administrators to easily select commonlyimplemented program features around which they can structure their own programs. Instead,DOC managers and sheriffs must take the time to pick and choose among a range of alternativesfor designing their own stress programs, and they need to assess the benefits and limitations ofeach possible component. On the positive side, however, this programmatic diversity meanscorrectional administrators do not have to feel they are obligated to follow slavishly any onemodel or approach; they have the freedom to tailor the various components of their program tothe particular needs of their facilities and employees and to the characteristics of theirdepartment's structure, history, size, and resources.While the choices may be daunting, there is expert help available for making them. Keyparticipants in all seven programs have agreed to field telephone calls to share information aboutwhat works best for them and why. The names and telephone numbers of these individualsfollow each case study below. In addition, chapter 7, "Evaluation, Funding, and TechnicalAssistance," identifies still other individuals with national experience in stress programming whoare available for consultation.Selecting a Suitable Organizational Structure Is ImportantThere are three possible organizational relationships between a stress program and thecorrectional agency it serves:(1) An in-house program is a separate unit within--and operated by--the correctional agency(Massachusetts' Stress Unit, Multnomah County's Peer Support Program, New York State's Post-Incident Stress Debriefing Program, Texas' Post Trauma Staff Support Program).(2) External arrangements involve regular use of a private service provider (South Carolina'sPost Trauma Resources, California's Counseling Team).(3) Hybrid programs combine elements of both in-house and external structures (Rhode Island'sStress Unit and Family Service Society).The Rhode Island Department of Corrections Stress UnitBrief Program OverviewThe Rhode Island Department of Corrections Stress Unit has two components:(1) Family Service Society, a nonprofit outpatient counseling agency, provides professionalevaluation and counseling, along with referral to other sources of professional help (includinghospitalization), to the department's 1,547 employees and their family members. Family Service