NSU Horizons Fall 2018

10 NSU HORIZONS “It was like a beehive,” he said. “Everyone was setting up and getting ready — and we all had one goal in mind, to make those coming in for counseling feel safe.” No one really knew what to expect. This, after all, was not only one of the worst school shootings in American history, it was the first in South Florida and Broward County. “In all honesty, we really didn’t know what was coming,” he said. “We had to be prepared for anything and everything.” When it comes to grief and trying to comprehend the incomprehensible, Quinones said, everyone has different ways of dealing with it. In Parkland, some found comfort in talking with counselors, while others leaned on their classmates, crying in each other’s arms. The counselors picked up these cues quickly and made themselves available in whatever way worked best. “We worked to help people come to grips with the idea of what happened, happened,” he said. “Not that it was okay that it happened, but that it did happen.” Quinones and other counselors from NSU worked with students and adults the day after the incident. He talked with students who witnessed the carnage firsthand. Toward the end of that first day, as some of the frenzy subsided, he ventured out to the city park where a large group of mourners had gathered — partly because he wanted to gauge the community’s collective coping skills and partly because he needed to gather himself. Hearing students’ accounts reminded him that counselors must care for themselves, too. Various studies seem to bear him out. Research shows that it’s not uncommon for counselors to suffer from burnout and depression, and, in some cases, even resort to suicide. “That’s the thing many don’t think about — [counselors] hear people talk about the most horrific things that occurred in their life, that could occur in life, and then, we’re somehow not supposed to be affected by it,” Quinones said. “But that’s just not realistic. Yes, we’re professionally trained to help counsel others, but we’re still human, and we’re affected by what we hear.” At the end of that first day, Quinones and his fellow counselors met to debrief on what they had encountered as a way to share learning experiences. But, he said there was a residual result of talking with each other. “The group debrief helped us,” he said. “Communication is key — and talking with others about what you experienced and how it affected you can be cathartic to a certain extent. And you have to be honest with yourself — if you need time, you need time.” Van Hasselt has been providing emotional support counseling to first responders for decades, and he sees a need every bit as great as the needs of victims and families. And it’s not just the police officers, firefighters, and paramedics — but anyone who responds to the incident. Often overlooked are 9-1-1 operators, who are often referred to as “first responders to the incident,” compared to field officers who are “first responders to the scene.” 9-1-1 operators often interact with witnesses, or worse, soon-to-be victims, as the situation unfolds in real time. In case after case, 9-1-1 recordings detail gunfire clearly audible in the background of emergency calls while the operator is trying to manage a caller who is embroiled in violence. “In some cases, once the caller hangs up is the last [the operator] hears of the incident,” said Van Hasselt. “They don’t get closure. They don’t know what happened, unless it makes the news. And that can be grating on them, which can lead to the need to talk with someone about it.” Another oft-overlooked group are those who respond immediately after an incident has been contained — crime scene investigators, medical examiner’s office technicians, and others. “Who’s documenting the scene? Who’s removing the bodies?” Van Hasselt asks, rhetorically. “These individuals can be just as traumatized as those responding to the active scene. We need to be aware that they, too, may need counseling.” Van Hasselt, a professor at NSU since 1992, is the director of the Family Violence and Adolescent Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment Programs in NSU’s Psychology Services Center. But his area of specialization is police psychology, focusing on the challenges and problems of “People talk about the most horrific things that occurred in their life, that could occur in life, and then we’re somehow not supposed to be affected by it. But that’s just not realistic. Yes, we’re professionally trained to help counsel others, but we’re still human, and we’re affected by what we hear.” — Mike Quinones continued from previous page