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Crisis and Disaster Training Institute

Designed to Help Your Employees Help Themselves and Others

The Crisis Training Institute and the Disaster Training Institute of Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic (WPIC), part of UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside, provide a range of programs and consulting services for crisis prevention and intervention, stress management, and mental health disaster response. These services are for any group or organization that encounters crisis situations on an ongoing basis or would potentially need to respond effectively to a crisis or disaster.

Because of our unique philosophy and realistic “hands-on” approach, our programs have become the benchmark in crisis, stress, and disaster management. Training participants have praised the programs as highly valuable for addressing their needs and concerns, in addition to being enjoyable. Those who have adopted the practices and approaches we teach have noted increased confidence and effectiveness in dealing with volatile and stressful situations.

Download our Crisis and Disaster Training Institute Brochure in PDF format by clicking here. (revised 3/26/07)

NEW* Programs for Colleges and Universities

A crisis can affect a whole campus or a single individual. We can help you respond effectively to your students and staff after an unanticipated and stressful event. The Crisis Training Institute can train your staff to respond appropriately and effectively to members of your campus community when something unanticipated and stressful happens. For more information, please contact Kyessa l Brian at briankl@upmc.edu

Download our Programs for Colleges and University Broochure in PDF format by clicking here. (revised 4/9/08)

PA-OMHSAS TRAININGS:

Please check back at a later time

Upcoming Trainings:

CISM: Individual Crisis Intervention and Peer Support & Group Crisis Intervention (PN57), September 23-25, 2008, UPMC Shadyside Herberman Conference Center, Pittsburgh, Pa. Click here for program description: (MS-Word); (HTML); (PDF) For more information, please contact Kyessa Brian at briankl@upmc.edu

CISM: Individual Crisis Intervention and Peer Support (PN65), October 13-14, 2008, UPMC Shadyside Herberman Conference Center, Pittsburgh, Pa. Click here for program description: (MS-Word); (HTML); (PDF) For more information, please contact Kyessa Brian at briankl@upmc.edu

Comprehensive Crisis Management Train The Trainer (PM39), October 20-24, 2008, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic
3811 O’Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 Click here for program description: (MS-Word); (PDF) For more information, please contact Kyessa Brian at briankl@upmc.edu

Emergency Preparedness (MB19), October 28, 2008, UPMC South Hills, Bethel Park, Pa. Click here for program description: (MS-Word); (HTML); (PDF) For more information, please contact Nancy Mundy at mundynl@upmc.edu

CISM: Advanced Group Crisis Intervention (PN58), November 17-18, 2008, UPMC Shadyside Herberman Conference Center, Pittsburgh, Pa. Click here for program description: (MS-Word); (HTML); (PDF) For more information, please contact Kyessa Brian at briankl@upmc.edu

Comprehensive Crisis Management Train The Trainer Recertification (PM41), November 20-21. 2008, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic 3811 O’Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 Click here for program description: (MS-Word); (PDF) For more information, please contact Kyessa Brian at briankl@upmc.edu

CISM: Stress Management for the Trauma Provider (PN68), January 13-14, 2009, UPMC Shadyside Herberman Conference Center, Pittsburgh, Pa. Click here for program description: (MS-Word); (HTML); (PDF) For more information, please contact Kyessa Brian at briankl@upmc.edu

WEBCAST ADDED: We've added "Family Emergency Planning: Disaster Preparedness from an Organizational and Behavioral Perspective (A013)" to our webcast archive section. Please click here more details. Click here for more details.

Click here for OMHSAS Sponsored Trainings

Benefits of Crisis Training

Knowing how to prevent crises and crisis-related injuries

Patient or customer and staff injuries related to crises are significantly decreased.
Staff report increased comfort levels in handling volatile and stressful situations.
Organizations who offer crisis training to their employees report enhanced productivity due to a safer work environment and cost savings due to a decrease in workers’ compensation claims, time off work, and health care expenses. Organizations also avoid damage to their public image, which often results from mishandled crises.

Our Programs

The Crisis Training Institute provides a range of programs and services to help professionals learn to handle themselves in potentially violent or disaster-related situations and develop skills to help minimize injury and reduce stress impact. Our professionals come to your workplace to conduct the training sessions.

Training programs can be structured and tailored to address the unique concerns of a specific group or work setting based on a “needs evaluation,” which is conducted with the employer. Upon request, we also provide environmental consultations, consultations on specific patients or customers, disaster response planning, stress management strategies, and development of crisis team building and planning procedures.

Here are brief descriptions of the programs we offer:

Comprehensive Crisis Management (CCM) is a one day program that teaches crisis prevention, management, and physical intervention skills.
Comprehensive Crisis Management “Train the Trainer” is a five-day program that provides participants with the skills needed to function as CCM trainers.
Positive Approaches in Crisis Situations is a two-day class that includes the components of CCM, in addition to training on positive behavioral support.
Alternative Interventions is a one-day training program designed to expand participants’ understanding of the positive behavioral support model, as well as explore intervention techniques in actual practice situations.
Crisis Assistance Team Training is a one-day class that teaches participants advanced intervention and team response skills that can be utilized by crisis intervention teams.
Crisis Intervention Skills for First Responders is a one-day training program based on the CCM model, with emphasis on first responder crisis situations.
Comprehensive Crisis Management for Physicians is a four-hour training program that includes doctor-specific core competencies in seclusion and restraint regulations as well as physical skills training.
Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) courses, certified by the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, are two-day courses that teach stress management and crisis intervention.
Basic CISM presents the core elements of this multicomponent crisis intervention model.
Peer Support CISM teaches the dynamics of trauma as well as personal and peer support trauma management strategies.
Advanced CISM broadens the knowledge base established in the basic course and exposes participants to strategies that can be used in complex crisis situations.
Pastoral Crisis Intervention is the combination of faith-based resources with traditional techniques of crisis intervention.
Disaster Response Training for Mental Health Responders is a two-day training program that includes a basic course, which walks responders step by step through a disaster from declaration to response and follow-up. It also includes an advanced course designed to provide knowledge of terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, coordination with incident command, and response to special population needs.

We also offer:

management consultations
coordination of the Assaulted Staff Assistance Program

Experience, Education, and Expertise

Experience is a vital part of effective crisis training. Our professional team offers a combined total of more than 100 years of experience in the field of mental health and crisis management. The team’s collective background includes clinical research, management, and education as well as psychiatric nursing, emergency room, emergency medical service, disaster response, and mobile crisis experience.

Our training programs meet the strict standards of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and were developed in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Office of Mental Health.

We can provide:

knowledge of current regulations and competencies
continuing education credit
web-based training
needs analysis and consulting services

A Proven Track Record

Our “Train the Trainer” programs have been implemented at the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, Mayview and Torrance Pennsylvania state hospitals, Virginia Commonwealth University Health System, and the Psychiatric Institute of Washington, D.C.
We have received approval from the Pennsylvania Department of Health (Emergency Medical Services Office) to be the sole provider in the state of crisis management continuing education credit training to all first responders, including EMT, life flight, police, and fire personnel.
Our basic and advanced disaster response training programs were developed in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Office of Mental Health and now are provided to mental health responders across the state.
We have adopted the individualized, person-centered treatment model of positive behavioral support into our Comprehensive Crisis Management Program.

To Learn More

To learn more about our programs or to schedule a consultation, please submit the form below or contact Kyessa Brian at 412-605-1218 or email briankl@upmc.edu

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If you are experiencing any problems accessing this information please E-mail Patrick Connell or call him at (412)802-6906.

This page last updated 08/11/2008