Running head: CRITICAL INCIDENT MANAGEMENT

Critical Incident Management A critical incident is defined as according to Occupational Health, Safety, and Welfare (2001), a traumatic event, or the threat of such which has the potential to harm life or well-being and causes extreme stress, fear or injury to the person or persons experiencing or witnessing the event (para. 2). A critical incident management plan is a plan that details functions to plan for, respond, and prevent incidents that can become critical (University of Denver, 2008). A critical incident plan must be available for all organizations. This plan will help to prepare the organizations on how to handle any critical incident that may arise. A critical incident management plan has different tasks and roles. Supervisors are in charge of the execution of the procedures within their areas. They need to make sure that their employees are trained and capable of handling any critical incident. They are responsible for consulting their employees on any proposed changes and practices for critical incidents. They are also responsible for the safety of their employees during and following any critical incident. Employees also have responsibilities during a critical incident. They have a responsibility to themselves and their coworkers and not putting either in harms way. They have a responsibility to report to management and critical incidents or potential critical incidents. They are responsible for working with managers on identifying hazards and risks that could become a critical incident (Occupational Health, Safety & Welfare, 2001). Scenario planning is used for strategic analysis and planning. It can be used to develop policies and strategies (Foresight Horizon Scanning Centre, 2009). Scenario-based planning is important in any organization but especially in the justice and security organizations. Using scenarios of critical incidents can be beneficial in the justice and security organizations by

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preparing to handle these incidents in an orderly manner. It also can be beneficial in setting their policies for any critical incidents. Different scenarios can be setup to represent different events that have different impacts on the future. The scenarios are explored to see what impact they would have on the world if the incidents were to happen. They are used to set up the policies and to test plans to handle these incidents. They can be used as a means to identify early warning signs of a coming critical incident (Foresight Horizon Scanning Centre, 2009). These scenarios can influence how law enforcement may react to a mob that is demonstrating against the government. How they will handle the mob should they act a specific way. If law enforcement have policies in place that state how they should react and what the outcome will be if they react that way will help to avoid a major critical incident. There are steps to be considered when setting up a scenario-based plan. One is it should state the purpose of the exercise and if it is clear. It needs to state if these scenarios will be used in a practice. Time frames should be set for the scenarios. It needs to be decided on who will participate in the scenarios. And how will the scenarios be communicated effectively. The purpose of the scenarios needs to be clarified as to the purpose of the work and how they will be used (Foresight Horizon Scanning Centre, 2009). September 11 caught everyone off guard. Using this as an example on how scenario-based plans should be used. They should be used for all emergency personnel to know where they should be and what they should be doing in the case of a critical incident. All emergency agencies should use a scenario-based plan to set their policies within their organizations. Using

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these scenarios they will practice what the outcome will be in the case of an incident. Once these policies are in place they will have a more structured emergency response. The criminal justice system and security organizations should use scenario-based plans and training to prepare themselves for any emergency situations. These plans will influence on how they react to an emergency. Having these plans will give more direction on handling the emergency. It will give them knowledge that should be integrated into their organizations. These plans will allow for employees to be trained and to use the knowledge that they gain from these scenarios. With situations like 9/11 in society today the administration in the criminal justice system and security must be ready to do battle.

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References Foresight Horizon Scanning Centre. (2009). Scenario planning. Retrieved from http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/bispartners/foresight/docs/horizon-scanningcentre/foresight_scenario_planning.pdf Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare. (2001). Critical incident management. Retrieved from http://www.unisa.edu.au/ohsw/procedures/criticalincident.asp University of Denver. (2008). Critical incident management plan. Retrieved from http://www.du.edu/emergency/media/documents/08-002-RIS-crit-inc.pdf