Protecting the Mental Wellbeing of Security Professionals

Vicarious trauma is a type of second-hand psychological response most often associated with first responders and front-line crisis workers. Although professional investigators and other security professionals are usually not the first on the scene, they frequently find themselves listening to both victims and accused people who recount what could be the worst days of their lives.  Further, they may be required to secure or attend a scene of a horrific incident pending further law enforcement or safety / compliance investigations.

There is no doubt that exposure to others' trauma can be stressful and sometimes triggering for those who are managing it. The personal and organizational impacts can include compromised risk assessment and investigations, security practitioner burnout and absenteeism, and a less healthy workplace overall.

Join Ken McCarthy as he shares his experience with vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue resulting from his involvement in workplace investigations.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion, participants will be able to:

1. How to assess trauma risks to security practitioners inherent in their day-to-day activities.
2. How to implement measures that prevent, mitigate, and respond to compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma.
3. How best practices in incident and case management can help to ease the emotional burden on security practitioners.

Presenter*

Kenneth (Ken) McCarthy, PCI
President
Integrity By McCarthy Inc

Ken McCarthy is a former executive from the Canada Border Services Agency, where during the final 10 years of his career, he led a workplace investigations program and a personnel security clearance program for a workforce of over 15,000 employees. He provided executive oversight in more than 500 workplace investigations and has designed and delivered investigation training sessions to over 500 front-line managers.

Ken has seen the devastating consequences of workplace harassment, violence, wrongdoing and fraud on individuals and organizations, from issues related to mental health, absenteeism, and presenteeism; to organizational reputation damage and financial losses. He set out to make a difference by founding Integrity By McCarthy Inc., which is a boutique family run firm based in Ottawa, Ontario.

Ken is a licenced private investigator in the provinces of Ontario and Alberta.  His firm, Integrity By McCarthy Inc.. is a licensed Agency in Ontario.

*Note:  Speakers and content are subject to change without notice.

Credit Information

Completion of this webinar is eligible for 1 CPE credit.  CPE credits for ASIS-sponsored webinars will be updated in your user profile within 48 hours of completion.  Self-reporting of CPE credits is not required.