CRISIS Training

CRISIS Training: A Structured Approach to Psychological First Aid

CRISIS Psychological First Aid Training is designed to equip individuals with the skills and knowledge needed to deliver effective support following distressing or traumatic experiences

Developed by Sean McCallum, the CRISIS model provides a clear framework that helps facilitators support individuals in crisis, promoting recovery, stability, and resilience.

This structured framework is particularly valuable for those working in emergency services, healthcare, education, and community support. By learning to apply the six core elements of the CRISIS model, participants gain practical skills to manage critical situations confidently and compassionately.

What is the CRISIS Psychological First Aid Model?

The Critical Incident Stress Integration & Support (CRISIS) model is a structured system of psychological first aid that follows six distinct stages, each focusing on a different aspect of support. The model is designed to provide emotional stability, promote recovery, and prevent long-term psychological harm.

The term CRISIS is also an acronym that stands for the six core elements of the CRISIS Schema:

• Communication

• Risk

• Integration

• Safety

• Information

• Support

By progressing through these steps, facilitators can offer immediate emotional care, helping individuals regain stability and clarity after distressing experiences.

Unlike clinical approaches, the CRISIS model avoids diagnostic labels, interpretation, or judgment. Instead, it empowers individuals to reflect, process, and understand their experiences in a supportive and structured environment.

Who is CRISIS Training For?

This training programme is suitable for a wide range of individuals and organisations, including, but not limited to:

• First responders such as firefighters, police officers, and paramedics.

• Healthcare professionals working in hospitals, GP practices, or mental health services.

• Educators supporting students during emotionally challenging situations.

• Community leaders and volunteers assisting those affected by critical incidents.

• Workplace managers seeking to support employees following traumatic experiences.

The programme equips participants with practical skills that can be applied in both professional and personal settings.

Focus – Core Elements of CRISIS Training

1. Communication

Effective communication is the foundation of emotional support. Building rapport through active listening, empathy, and trust ensures individuals feel safe and supported.

The model emphasises non-intrusive, person-centred communication. Facilitators allow individuals to describe their experiences in their own words, respecting their interpretation without imposing judgment.

2. Risk

The Risk element within the CRISIS model is designed to assess and manage potential threats to an individual’s wellbeing following a critical incident.

CRISIS Training introduces participants to the Critical Incident Risk Assessment System (CIRAS), developed by Sean McCallum — a structured method for identifying and evaluating critical risk indicators that may influence a person’s response to a crisis.

The foundation of CIRAS are the four I’s and their sub-criterion – a person centred approach to identifying key risk factors that influence how an individual processes a critical incident:

• Incident – the incident a person experienced.

• Involvement – a person’s involvement in the incident they experienced.

• Interpretations – a person’s interpretations of their involvement in the incident they experienced.

• Impact – the impact of a person’s interpretations of their involvement in the incident they experienced.

By using CIRAS, facilitators can identify immediate concerns while also recognising potential long-term challenges. This structured approach ensures a comprehensive trauma risk management system, helping facilitators tailor their support to meet the individual’s needs.

3. Integration

The Integration Matrix is introduced as a structured method for helping individuals make sense of their experiences. This method follows four phases:

• Reviewing

• Confronting

• Handling

• Consolidating

Through this process, participants learn to reduce emotional charge and help restore a sense of order to a person’s world.

4. Safety

Ensuring physical and psychological safety is a core focus of CRISIS Training. Facilitators are trained to create a safe and secure environment where individuals feel able to express their thoughts and feelings without fear of judgment.

In addition to ensuring immediate safety, CRISIS Training emphasises the importance of psychological safety — creating conditions where individuals feel supported, respected, and able to speak openly about their experiences. This is key to encouraging individuals to process distressing events without feeling overwhelmed, disempowered, or invalidated.

Safeguarding is also a crucial part of CRISIS. Facilitators are trained to follow safeguarding protocols to ensure individuals are connected to appropriate support services if concerns arise.

By combining psychological safety with safeguarding principles, CRISIS Training ensures facilitators can provide responsible, ethical, and person-centred care.

5. Information

Providing clear, practical information helps individuals understand their responses and recovery journey.

Participants are trained to offer guidance on:

• Natural recovery

• Self-care strategies

• Emotional responses

By offering this information, facilitators empower individuals to take an active role in their recovery.

6. Support

Ongoing support is crucial to recovery, and active monitoring plays a vital role. Facilitators are trained to maintain contact with individuals in the days and weeks following the initial support session.

Active monitoring includes:

• Regular check-ins to assess wellbeing.

• Providing ongoing reassurance and guidance.

• Identifying emerging issues that may require further support.

This proactive approach ensures individuals remain supported throughout their recovery, reducing the risk of long-term psychological harm.

Benefits of CRISIS Training

This structured programme equips participants with valuable skills that can be applied across professional and community settings. Key benefits include:

• Enhanced Psychological First Aid Skills: The CRISIS model offers a structured and practical approach to supporting individuals in distress.

• Person-Centred Support: The model encourages facilitators to empower individuals to process their experiences in their own way.

• Improved Risk Management: Participants learn to assess psychological risks while respecting the individual’s experience.

• Emphasis on Natural Recovery: The training promotes resilience by encouraging individuals to process their experience, augmenting natural integration processes.

• Active Monitoring for Long-term Support: Ongoing care ensures individuals remain supported throughout their recovery journey.

• Emphasis on Psychological Safety and Safeguarding: Participants are trained to maintain both psychological safety and responsible safeguarding practices when required.

• Flexible Application: Suitable for professionals, volunteers, and community members alike.

How to Access CRISIS Training

This comprehensive training programme is delivered through structured workshops designed to combine theoretical understanding with practical application. Participants engage in role-play scenarios, group discussions, and guided exercises to build confidence in applying the CRISIS model.

The programme is available for individuals, teams, and organisations seeking to improve their approach to psychological first aid.

CRISIS Training is an essential resource for individuals seeking to provide meaningful support following critical incidents. By applying the six core elements of the CRISIS Schema — Communication, Risk, Integration, Safety, Information, and Support — facilitators can effectively deliver psychological first aid that promotes recovery, clarity, and resilience.

With its emphasis on active monitoring, psychological safety, and safeguarding, this structured approach ensures individuals are supported beyond the initial session, improving long-term outcomes. This comprehensive training model empowers facilitators to manage challenging situations with empathy, confidence, and care.