Wanda English Burnett - Editor

A new team is in place to help people who may have been a witness to a traumatic event, or experienced it themselves. This team didn’t come about overnight, but has been in the process for the past few years according to Janice Hosmer, who has helped with the project. “We’ve been working on this for a long time,” she told The Versailles Republican recently.

Critical events could include a bank robbery, serious injury, death or suicide of a co-worker, mass casualty incident such as a school shooting or terrorist attack, or a community disaster such as a tornado, fire or industrial accident. A press release from Margaret Mary Community Hospital noted, “These events are usually sudden, unexpected situations that can result in significant emotional or post-traumatic stress or grief.”

The Southeastern Indiana Regional Critical Incident Stress Management (SIRCISM) Team was developed to assist people involved in crisis situations who might benefit from intervention. Hosmer noted that this team is modeled after international and state teams. “Members of the state team went to help Katrina victims,” she noted.

Saying the team has been in place a short time, Hosmer noted there are a variety of people who serve as volunteers for the program. “We have mental health workers, people from fire departments, law enforcement, ministers, business people, educators and more,” she noted. The team is comprised of volunteers who stand ready to help others by volunteering their time and talents.

The SIRCISM Team provides a variety of services to help emergency and public service workers and other individuals and groups to deal with traumatic events and their psychological impact. The services are free 24-hours a day upon request by calling toll free 1-877-849-1248. The team serves an eight county area: Ripley, Dearborn, Decatur, Franklin, Jefferson, Jennings, Ohio, and Switzerland.

For more information on how you can become involved as a volunteer or have a presentation for your group or organization, call Hosmer at 654-2180.

The SIRCISM Team is funded, in part, by grants from the Ripley County Community Foundation, the John A. Hillenbrand Foundation and the Rising Sun Regional Foundation.