Peer Assistance | Mentoring | Coaching | Join the Peer Resources Network

The Peer News
ISSN 1708-9042

(March 21, 2005)

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TOPICS

1. Peer Support Helps Heal Trauma and Decrease Stress
2. Time Limited Preview Access Avaiable to the Career Advisor
3. Student Peer Leadership Training Book Available at a Discount
4. Attend a Peer Conference or Training Event
5. Four Key Studies from Peer Research to Strengthen Practice
6. Peers Help Families with Workplace Tragedies
7. Job Opportunity to Lead a University-Based Peer Program
8. Healthy Beginnings Program Seeks Proposals for Peer Visitors Strategy
9. Subscribing, Unsubscribing, Distribution and Copyright

PEER SUPPORT HELPS HEAL TRAUMA AND DECREASE STRESS

Imagine you are a full time firefighter and you have a family with three teenagers. Yesterday, in the fog, you were involved with the extraction of two teens from a car accident. One teen died on the way to the hospital and the other is in intensive care. You can't get your mind off them; neither can the team of volunteer firefighters who were also on the call. One of your teenagers attends the same school as the students in the car accident. When you come into work the Chief says, "We've got a Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) debriefing at 4:00 today, and I would like the whole crew from the accident to be there."

What happens for firefighters to help them cope with traumatic incidents? What happens if the situation involves so many firefighters, paramedics and other rescue personnel that the normal support system is overwhelmed? What happens to support the firefighters from several stations if they are working together on a fire where one gets seriously injured or dies on the job? These are great questions to use to introduce a Peer Support model called CISM.

While the peer support movement was growing in Canada, Jeffrey Mitchell, a former fireman who went on to earn his Ph.D. in Psychology, created a technique for debriefing emergency service workers after critical or traumatic incidents. He went on to develop the model into a system used for managing critical incident stress and to play a leading role in the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, an organization which designs and approves certified courses to be used in training those interested in CISM and helping others.

Critical incident stress is a normal reaction, by a normal person, to an abnormal event, and Dr. Mitchell's model builds on this concept and also uses an educational model to outline the physical, cognitive, emotional and behavioural components of the stress reaction, with cautions about the normal time frame in which to expect these reactions, and the need to get more support if the time frame of the reactions is too long and more help is needed.

A CISM team is composed of two main groups. The peer group is composed of firefighters, police officers, paramedics, emergency medical technicians, critical care and emergency nurses, dispatch personnel, park service rangers, corrections officers, ski patrol, search dog team members, disaster workers and lifeguards. These people have the training in their own emergency services component and the CISM courses, basic and advanced. The other group in the team is the mental health workers and is composed of social workers, psychologists, family therapists, clergy and other related designations.

When the CISM team coordinator sends a team out, the team usually has 3 per 15 participants and of the three, one will be mental health, one will be from the peer group involved, and the other is from either group. If the main group to be debriefed is composed of nurses, then at least one peer in the CISM team will be from nursing.

A peer or a mental health professional who wants to join a team and provide debriefings, demobilizations, defusings and other CISM interventions would take the Basic and Advanced CISM courses and then apply to a local team for membership. Courses emphasize stress and critical incident stress; emotional, physical, cognitive & behavioural reactions to CIS; management of CIS; team development and deployment; and standards of practice.

The peer support movement has been growing in educational institutions (elementary, secondary and post-secondary schools), in Canada for 30 years now. Community based peer support groups are also growing; they are stronger because they have well-developed training programs and valid purposes which help communities to get stronger. These include CISM, VCRS, the Heart and Stroke Foundation Facilitators, Peer-Led Mental Health Consumer groups, and other programs.

The CISM peer support network is well documented and it works. It is not a counselling model; rather, it provides psychological, physical, social, and educational support, along with follow-up and referral where necessary.

At the 4th Annual National Peer Support Conference in Ottawa, held in January 2005, I encouraged participants to adapt their peer support programs so that they could be prepared for critical incidents. My recommendations included: (1) modify the training models for peer helpers to include (a) an understanding of Critical Incident Stress and Trauma as well as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PSTD), (b) an awareness of the networks and resources, including training programs and websites related to Critical Incident Stress Management; and (d) an understanding of the Rescue Personality.

I also recommended that it is essential for peer trainers to encourage global and career awareness and provide a link to career futures involving trauma for students who want to be emergency workers, crisis managers, doctors, social workers, clergy, family therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses, surgeons, firefighters, police officers, nurses, and related professions, as well as encourage peers to take CISM courses.

In the Spring of 1989, Rey Carr, the CEO of Peer Resources, wrote: “As the movement has progressed, leaders have emerged with different visions, extending peer work to populations not anticipated by pioneers.” Jeffrey Mitchell is truly a pioneer and thanks to his groundbreaking work, the application of CISM is moving outside of emergency responders and being applied to many community venues. The future for CISM is exciting. It is a help delivery system focused on helping people to manage critical incident stress in a safe environment.

(This article was prepared by Trish Loraine McCracken P.H.Ec., B.A., M.Ed., C.Y.C. (Cert), who is a member of the Georgian CISM Team and has been a volunteer in peer support programs in Ontario for over 25 years. Her work in this area was one of the reasons for the wide-spread success of peer support in Ontario. Contact Trish at TrishMcCracken@encode.com.)

"At this very moment we have the necessary techniques, both material and psychological, to create a full and satisfying life for everyone."

~ B.F. Skinner ~

TIME LIMITED PREVIEW ACCESS AVAILABLE TO THE CAREER ADVISOR

The most powerful career assessment, exploration and options tool on the Internet, the newly-created Career Advisor, is a must for people experiencing career transition, balance issues, or a desire to move to the next level. Designed by international career expert, best-selling author and national newspaper columnist, Dr. Barbara Moses, this tool has 19 diagnostic instruments and personal reports, 39 assessments, and over 90 modules including skills, work style, suitability for self-employment, career intelligence quotient, how to define and find ideal work, overcome career distress, and much more.

Career Advisor has received high praise from career coaches, managers, and executives. One coach who was provided the time-limited access by Peer Resources initially wanted to explore the site to determine whether it would be suitable to recommend to a client. However, after a short exploratory phase, the coach found himself "totally blown-away" and was able bring his peer coaching to a higher level.

Career Advisor starts at $250 per end client user (minimum order usually requires access keys for 5 clients) with volume discounts for larger orders. Peer Resources is so convinced about the value of this new resource that we have made arrangements with the creators of this interactive career management tool to distribute a limited number of access keys at a significant discount of $25.00. The access key provides each user with a one-week preview opportunity to use all features of the site. If a Peer News subscriber decides to go ahead and use Career Advisor for his or her adult clients, the $25.00 preview access will be deducted from the cost of the minimum purchase of access keys for five or more clients.

Any Peer News subscriber that currently has (1) an active practice that engages clients in career discussions, and (2) is in a position to recommend the Career Advisor system to a business or corporate organization for its employees is eligible to obtain one of the discounted keys.

To obtain a password, email Rey Carr at rcarr@peer.ca with brief details about eligibility.

"When we grow old, there can only be one regret: not to have given enough of ourselves."

~ Eleonora Duse ~

STUDENT LEADERSHIP TRAINING BOOK AVAILABLE AT A DISCOUNT

The practice of students helping each other to achieve their goals and dreams has a long historical tradition. Tutoring, for example, has ancient origins and remains today one of the most powerful ways that students learn from each other. Student leadership has a more recent beginning but is equally as widespread in schools across North America. But the most profound example of students helping each other and one that has the most power for creating a safe and peaceful world is when students actively demonstrate their care for one another.

Typically called peer helping or peer assistance, this method of students helping other students is based on their natural willingness and desire to talk to someone who will listen and understand, be non-judgmental and accepting and in many cases has similar life experiences. What I discovered thirty years ago when I first started in this field is still true today: young people when experiencing a worry, frustration or problem are more likely to seek the council of another young person rather than discuss the issue with an adult.

Why not help young people to have better skills to help their friends? Why not provide them with the training and supervision to turn peer pressure into peer support? Through our research we learned many years ago that not only was this possible, but that young people could easily take responsibility for exceptional leadership in this field.

But youth cannot do this completely on their own. They need the support and assistance of highly skilled and caring professionals who can be role models. At the same time these adult professionals must know how to nurture the abilities of youth without taking over or "professionalizing" what young people can do for and with each other.

Long-time Peer Resources Network member and one of North America's top peer trainers, Diane Taub exemplifies the caring professional. With the assistance of some highly talented and skilled peer helpers, Ms. Taub, former Coordinator of Student Leadership Training at Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles, has authored a new workbook that provides exercises, activities, and information that will accomplish two major school-based peer program goals: (1) provide proven, high quality experiential training for students; and (2) serve as a credible and tested curriculum guide for peer programs that give student volunteers credit towards graduation requirements.

This student workbook, published by Scarecrow Press, was originally inspired by The Peer Helping Starter Kit, available from Peer Resources. However, the thoroughness of the workbook enables it to match up with many other training guides. Most importantly this workbook will benefit any student leadership program where students want to put their caring for each other into practice.

The book is called Student Leadership Training: A Workbook to Reinforce Effective Communication Skills. Peer Resources has acquired a limited number of copies of the book and is providing these copies at a discount to Peer News readers. The book normally sells for $22.95 plus shipping, but is available to readers at $16.95 each plus shipping. Persons who order seven or more copies will also receive a CD, prepared by the author, that includes all of the book's forms and training sessions and allows users to customize the material to suit their specific peer program. To order, call 1.800.567-3700 or email: peernews@peer.ca.

"It is not how many years we live, but what we do with them. It is not what we receive, but what we give to others."

~ Evangeline Booth ~

ATTEND A PEER CONFERENCE OR RELATED EVENT

Peer Ministry Training Opportunities
April through September, 2005
www.peerministry.org
(952) 698-3988

Threads of Life Workplace Tragedy Peer-Based Family Support Association Forum
April 29-May 1, 2005
Renaissance Toronto SkyDome Hotel (Toronto, Ontario)
www.threadsoflife.ca
(905) 655-9188

Third Annual Trauma and Global Health Conference
May 27-28, 2005
University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, Medical Sciences Building, McLeod Auditorium
intlhealth.med.utoronto.ca/
(416) 787-1060

19th Annual National Peer Helpers Association Conference
June 24-26, 2005
Hyatt Lodge in Oakbrook (near Chicago), Illinois
www.peerhelping.org
(877) 314-7337

Comprehensive Peer Program Development and Peer Trainer Training for Diversity
July 11-15, 2005
University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia
www.peer.ca/trng.html
(800) 567.3700 or (250) 595-3503

For additional peer conferences, training workshops or events as well as to learn about what you missed, go to http://www.peer.ca/peerevents.html.


"Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have. Make the Now the primary focus on your life."

~ Eckhart Tolle ~

WHAT'S NEW FROM THE PEER ASSISTANCE LITERATURE

Peer Resources continually scans the professional and popular published literature to find articles of interest to people involved in peer assistance. Three of several hundred recent additions to the searchable, annotated bibliography at www.peer.ca/SearchB.html are:

Mikami, A. Boucher, M., and Humpherys, K. (January, 2005). Prevention of peer rejection through a classroom-level intervention in middle school. The Journal of Primary Prevention, 26, 1, 5-23.

One of the key elements of peer support is the ability of a trained peer helper to demonstrate caring and acceptance on a one-on-one basis. But students who feel rejected may not be in a position to seek out such support. And methods that single out rejected students may add to problems rather than prevent them. This project evaluated an intervention for preventing peer rejection and promote social acceptance on a class-wide basis in a middle school. The systems-level and preventive focus of this intervention differed markedly from traditional interventions that target deficits within individual rejected children. In collaboration with 24 teachers and their classrooms, the intervention team led mixed groups of accepted and rejected children in cooperative games that required teamwork and mutual respect among all members in order to succeed. To reinforce these alliances between children, as well as to prevent future peer rejection, teachers were encouraged to use cooperative, teamwork-based group activities for academic instruction. Results suggested that the intervention reduced the amount of self-reported peer rejection in classrooms. The steps and details of the cooperative games that were used to modify the classroom climate and promote acceptance and support are available from rcarr@islandnet.com.

Tessier, J. (May, 2004). Using peer teaching to promote learning in biology. Journal of College Science Teaching, 33, 6, 16-19.

This study examined whether peer teaching helps students perform better on exams than attending traditional lectures. Participants were 61 students at an eastern university who were enrolled in an introductory biology class for students who are preparing to become elementary teachers. The results revealed that students performed best on exam questions based on material they taught, that student test averages increased significantly after their teaching experience, and that this improvement was most pronounced for struggling students.

Johnson, D.W. and Johnson, R.T. (Eds.) (Winter, 2004). Conflict resolution and peer mediation. Theory into Practice, 43, 1, 6-89.

A special issue on conflict resolution and peer mediation is presented. Articles discuss a conflict resolution model formulated by a group of Australian psychologists; how and when to teach coping competencies; the use of socio-cognitive conflicts in the classroom to promote academic learning; conflict elaboration and cognitive outcomes; the work of the International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution at Teachers College, Columbia University; the monitoring and mapping of student victimization in schools; the integration of conflict resolution and peer mediation training into the curriculum; the Resolving Conflict Creatively Program; the implementation of the "Teaching Students to be Peacemakers Program;" and cooperative conflict management as a basis for training students in China. An annotated directory of resources for classroom use is also provided.

Varenhorst, B.B. (Fall, 2004). Tapping the power of peer helping. Reclaiming Children and Youth, 13, 3, 130-133.

Peer helping is a research-based intervention that recruits and trains young people, supervising them as they reach out to help their at-risk peers. It facilitates three basic components of healthy self-esteem: a sense of unique attributes, secure membership in a valued group, and feeling of participating in meaningful roles that contribute to others or society in general. Further information on peer helping as an intervention strategy for at-risk youth and a spiritual model of peer helping are provided.

"The best that great researchers can do for us is to help us to discover what is already present in ourselves."

~ Grey Owl ~

PEERS TRAINED TO HELP FAMILIES WITH WORKPLACE TRAGEDY

Threads of Life is a national, not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping Canadian families along their journey of healing after they have experienced a workplace tragedy. Threads of Life has designed a unique peer-based approach where family members who have experienced workplace injuries or death are recruited, screened, trained and supervised to provide support and assistance to other families who have experienced similar tragic events.

On April 29-May 1, 2005 Threads of Life will be hosting their first National Family and Friends Forum. This special event is designed to help families heal and share their grief but also become catalysts of positive change to prevent similar casualties from happening in the future to other families. “Friends” are those organizations that have a health and safety mandate. Friends will attend to learn how they can effectively and consistently support families touched by a workplace tragedy and also to hear about the progress and future plans of Threads of Life.

The Forum has been designed so that delegates will have opportunities to share their experiences and participate in a candlelight memorial event on Friday evening. A full day of sessions and workshops on Saturday will explore a number of issues including: the ripple effect of the inquest and investigations process, how it impacts the family and how it can better support grieving families; the importance and effectiveness of peer support; current government support initiatives; a review of the newly developed Family Support Program; Siblings in Grief; and many others. There will also be a 5K Family Run/Walk fundraising event co-led by the Industrial Accident Prevention Association to take place on Ward's Island (Toronto).

The Forum fee is $350.00 for the first family member and $250.00 for each additional family member. The fee for Friends of Threads of Life is set at $450.00.

For more information about the Forum and Threads of Life please contact: Shirley Hickman, Threads of Life, Toll-Free: 1-888-567-9490; local number: (519) 685-4276; or e-mail:hickman@execulink.com.

"Vision is the capacity to believe in what the heart sees, what others can't see. Vision is seeing positive possibilities where others see only negative probabilities."

~ Carl A. Hammerschlag ~

JOB OPPORTUNITY TO LEAD A UNIVERSITY BASED PEER PROGRAM

The University of Ottawa is seeking a Peer Education Coordinator for their Health Services/ Health Promotion team. (The deadline for submitting an application is March 28, 2005.)

This is a full-time position (35 hours per week) with a salary of $38,000 to $40,000. To review the qualifications and responsibilities for this position as well as the contact information for questions and submission of a resume, go to: http://tinyurl.com/72x9l.

"Friendship is a word the very sight of which in print makes the heart warm."

~ Augustine Birrell ~

HEALTHY BEGINNINGS PROGRAM SEEKS PROPOSALS FOR PEER VISITORS STRATEGY

The Province of Nova Scotia has published a Request for Proposals (RFP) to locate a community-based organization to employ, house, train, supervise, and provide on-going support for Community (Peer) Home Visitors (CHV) and part of the province's Healthy Beginnings standards of care. The CHV role includes emotional and practical support, provision of parent and general health information, referrals to partner organizations, and assistance with family goal setting, achievement and role modeling to eligible families during pregnancy and with children up to three years old.

For more information about Healthy Beginnings and to obtain the Peer Home Visitors RFP, contact The Capital District Health Authority, Room 863 Bethune Building, 1278 Tower Road, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 2Y9; Tel: (902) 473-7354 and ask for RFP#44732. Bids must be submitted by March 31, 2005.

The Peer News has been provided by Peer Resources <www.peer.ca/helping.html>. To become a member of the Peer Resources Network and receive a similar monthly publication as well as a print magazine on peer assistance, mentorship and coaching, visit <http://www.peer.ca/PRN.html> or call 1.800.567.3700 in North America or 1.250.595.3503 outside of North America. To be removed from this mailing list send an email to <info@peer.ca>.