Dear CISM Practitioner,

Currently ICISF has not deployed any CISM Teams or CISM Assessment/Strategic Planning Groups to the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina.

ICISF is involved in communicating with representatives from the States of Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana in reference to their current and projected CISM needs. Communications are also ongoing with our partners in the American Red Cross, Salvation Army, National Organization of Victim Assistance (NOVA) and many others.

Should ICISF be requested to provide assistance, the initial focus will be to provide support to community leaders with Assessments and Strategic Planning. Based on those discussions will be the deployment of CISM Teams and/or CISM Assessment/Strategic Planning Groups as needed and requested.

I strongly urge CISM Teams outside the affected States not to self-deploy unless formally requested by FEMA, State Agencies within the affected States, or ICISF.

We should all keep in mind that this catastrophic situation is still ongoing (operations mode) and continuing to expand as well. With that in mind, Crisis Management Services should be viewed in the long term, not short term.

Basic needs (physical safety, food, shelter, health care, etc.) of those impacted naturally need to be addressed first. We need to also acknowledge that the populations that we serve are a resilient group. Initial services that might be considered in a structured format would be of a supportive and/or educational nature.

ICISF priorities for CISM Team deployment will be through existing State CISM Networks and existing CISM Teams. Last resort for CISM resources will be individuals not affiliated with the before mentioned entities. If you are CISM Trained but have no affiliation, you may notify Don Gow ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) who is maintaining a list of individual volunteers.

Because we anticipate this to be a protracted event, we will be looking for sources of funding to offset anticipated expenses. Should you have any constructive comments concerning funding, please feel free to get back to me by emailing to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Should anyone be interested in providing a donation, they may review our Donations Link.

If there are any inquiries about CISM Training opportunities, you may view the Calendar of Conferences

Finally, please remember that this will be a long term event, pace yourself. Remember to practice appropriate stress management principles.

Further updates will follow as more information is obtained.

Donald Howell, Executive Director
International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc.
3290 Pine Orchard Lane, Unit 106
Ellicott City MD 21042-2272
http://www.icisf.org
410/750-9600
Fax: 410/750-9601                                                                                        KAT-05-01