Post-Incident Actions, Debriefing and Staff Welfare

Once a major incident has concluded and casualties have been evacuated, the next phase begins. Although everyone may feel ready to return home, there are important considerations to address, including learning from the incident and supporting the welfare of all staff involved.

Understanding how individuals respond to traumatic events is crucial. To manage this effectively, it is important to recognise what constitutes a normal post-traumatic response, distinguish between diffusing, debriefing and counselling, and understand the purpose and timing of operational debriefings.

Normal Post-Traumatic Responses

Following a major incident, a range of emotional, physical, and behavioural reactions is normal. These may include:

• Emotional responses: guilt (including survivor guilt), anxiety, or satisfaction at having performed well.
• Physical symptoms: disturbed sleep, fatigue, or restlessness.
• Psychological symptoms: flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, or heightened alertness.
• Impact on relationships and work: irritability, withdrawal, or reduced ability to carry out normal duties.

These reactions typically settle over time. However, symptoms that are severe, persistent for more than six months, or associated with increased use of alcohol or drugs may indicate a need for professional help.

Strategies for Supporting Staff

1. Diffusing

Diffusing is an informal and immediate process where staff talk openly with others who have experienced the same event. It allows them to “vent” and process the incident naturally. This is often peer-led and occurs organically, but may need to be facilitated when responders come from different locations and return to separate workplaces.

Providing a comfortable space with food, hydration, and time to talk demonstrates care for staff and helps them decompress.

2. Debriefing

Psychological Debriefing

Formal psychological debriefing is generally avoided unless absolutely necessary. Historically, Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) was widely used, but evidence now shows it may cause more harm than good. Instead, diffusing, peer monitoring, and welfare checks are preferred.

Operational Debriefing

Operational debriefing is essential and focuses on evaluating the response, identifying areas for improvement, and capturing lessons learned. It should answer core questions such as:

• What went well?
• What did not go well?
• What needs to change?
• What lessons were identified?

Debriefings should be structured, time-limited, and led by an experienced individual. They should follow a tiered process:

1. Local or team debriefs – managers gather feedback and record key points.
2. Service-level debriefs – senior managers review operational performance.
3. Multi-agency debriefs – focus solely on inter-agency working and coordination, not internal issues.

Multi-agency debriefs should take place 3–4 weeks after the incident to ensure each organisation has already completed internal debriefs.

To maximise participation, offer staff the option to contribute electronically (e.g., email, online survey) if they cannot attend in person.

3. Counselling

Counselling is appropriate when individuals show persistent psychological difficulties for up to six months post-incident. Support can be provided through:

• Trained lay counsellors
• Professional mental health practitioners or psychiatrists

It is essential that commanders do not ignore signs of distress. The NHS encourages the public to value mental health—but this must also apply to staff within the organisation. Supporting staff wellbeing is both a moral duty and essential for maintaining operational resilience.

Conducting an Effective Operational Debrief

Operational debriefings should include:

• A clear purpose – what the debrief aims to achieve.
• Defined areas for discussion – keeping the session focused and structured.
• Timings and agenda – for fairness and consistency.
• Use of a structured framework – e.g., the CSCAT approach (Command, Safety, Communications, Assessment, Triage).

The debrief should be run by someone who understands incident command but was not directly involved to avoid bias.

In serious incidents, future inquiries are likely. Therefore, within the first seven days you must:

• Collect and secure all log books
• Ensure commanders complete contemporaneous notes
• Organise and archive documentation centrally

This early preparation prevents significant challenges later, particularly in long-term inquiries such as those seen after major national incidents.

“Hot” Debriefing

A hot debrief is a brief, immediate review that takes place before crews leave the scene. It should last no longer than 10–15 minutes, capturing:

• Immediate observations
• Key learning points
• Essential actions or safety concerns

These bullet-point notes feed directly into later, more detailed debrief processes.

Lessons Identified vs. Lessons Learned

A distinction must be made:

• Lesson Identified: A problem or improvement has been recognised but not yet addressed.
• Lesson Learned: The organisation has implemented the necessary changes, updated policies or SOPs, and completed associated training.

True organisational improvement occurs only when lessons move from being merely identified to being fully learned and embedded.

Using electronic SOPs and response plans can significantly streamline updates, ensuring all staff work from the correct and current information.

Summary

Post-incident actions are vital for both operational improvement and staff welfare. Effective diffusing, structured debriefing, and appropriate counselling support ensure that responders recover well, that the organisation learns from events, and that changes are implemented to improve future incident responses.