Any environment where people live or work can present traumatic events that have a negative impact on individuals, both physically and psychologically. A traumatic event is defined as any incident that threatens the life or the physical or psychological integrity of an individual. The person or persons may be the target of the incident or merely have witnessed it.
When should you go for help?
Following a traumatic experience, it is imperative to act quickly and effectively to reduce its impact on individuals. The individual’s reaction to trauma is usually a normal reaction to an abnormal or unusual situation. A comprehensive evaluation of the condition of the individuals involved provides a basis for distinguishing between minor or normal reactions and those that require clinical attention.
Individual interventions available
Debriefing is a group intervention that, ideally, is offered within 72 hours following the trauma and allows participants to ventilate about their traumatic experience, their symptoms, and how to alleviate them in the short and long term. This session is about two hours in length.
In specific instances, an individual intervention may be offered to people who were unable to participate in group interventions, if their condition warrants it. A clinical follow-up is provided after any group or individual intervention.
Individual psychotherapy
Trauma victims may need individual psychological treatment not only shortly after the event but sometimes much later on. A thorough psychological assessment is advised, after which the client may be offered specific psychological treatments. A number of specific methods of psychological intervention (EMDR, cognitive therapy, etc.) have proved effective and are offered by experienced psychologists. Clearly, the psychological intervention is carried out in addition to any pharmacological intervention prescribed by a doctor or psychiatrist, as the case may be.
Access to psychological services
When possible, psychologists are prepared to intervene rapidly when a crisis situation requires it. A fair number of employers or groups of people have a prearranged agreement with us for this type of intervention. Those are often Employee Assistance Programs that we already serve, or other groups that want access to us at the CPA for Trauma Interventions. (Refer the section on Business - Crisis Intervention services).