Importance of debriefing following critical incidents

Working in emergency departments (EDs) is inherently stressful, and stress caused by events such as witnessed death, elder or child abuse, and aggression and violence can have profound effects on staff. One strategy that can be effective in helping staff deal with such events is critical incident stress debriefing but, as the literature suggests, this is poorly established in ED settings. This article reports the results of a study in three EDs in Ireland of nurses' and doctors' perceived needs for debriefing and makes recommendations to improve this area of practice.