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Learning From The Past and Planning For The Future
PROBLEMS ADDRESSED
LINKS What is the Institute? Calendar of Trainings and Conferences
Continuing Education Information
Partners, Supporters, Sponsors
Rocky Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Newsletter
Disaster Mental Health Bookstore
- Rural areas of the Rocky Mountain Region (Wyoming, Montana, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado) have many small communities and towns that have limited mental health services and, in particular, have very few, if any resources available for: CISM, CISD, traumatology and coping with terrorism training opportunities via workshops and/or conferences for CEUs at reasonable costs for professionals of all kinds.
- In order to gain training, experience, and CEUs, they must travel relatively far distances at various times of the year with weather always a major factor. The same that is true for workshops is also true for conferences and other networking opportunities.
- Networking is very difficult, as is team-building. Interdisciplinary workshops and training, especially in the areas of CISM, CISD, disaster mental health, trauma and coping with terrorism are relatively rare and difficult to accomplish due to availability, distances involved, and associated costs that can be prohibitive.
- Effectiveness of interventions in response to local and regional disasters, critical incidents and other traumatic events in the rural west remain under-researched at best. For example, evidence-based approaches to the aftermath of critical incidents (CISD with first responders) has a limited number of empirically-based outcome studies available. There are virtually none that evaluate the effectiveness of such interventions in small communities and other rural areas in the Rocky Mountain Region.
- Availability of professionals and peers trained in CISD/CISM, disaster mental health, traumatology, and coping with terrorism in small communities and rural areas is limited at best.
- Unless they are part of a larger business/industry or major governmental agency, most businesses, industries, agencies, etc. located in small communities and rural areas have little or no access to such training or services.
- The ability to network among professionals and peers outside of one’s immediate community is generally limited due to geography and distance. This makes it difficult to follow-up even after a training event. It also is difficult to develop relationships among professionals, peers and others.
