NDCISM Team Activation
24/7 Activation: 701-328-0707
The focus of this program is to minimize the harmful effects of stress, particularly in crisis or emergency situations. The priorities for this program are to maintain confidentiality and to respect the feelings of the individuals involved. It is not the team’s function to replace ongoing professional counseling but to provide immediate crisis intervention. The NDCISM Program is now housed under the Emergency Preparedness and Response Unit.
The purpose of CISM is to accelerate normal recovery, for normal people, having normal reactions to abnormal events, enabling people to quickly return to their daily routine.
About CISM
The North Dakota CISM Team will provide multi-dimensional management services for emergency services personnel who request it.
A critical incident is any incident, or compilation of incidents, faced by emergency personnel that cause emotional reactions which interfere with their ability to function either at the scene or after the fact in their professional role or in their personal life.
- We serve all levels of first responders: EMS agencies and personnel, fire and rescue, law enforcement, medical facilities and providers, dispatching agencies, etc.
- CISM services are free of charge.
- We come to your location.
- The team is comprised of emergency service personnel (peers) and mental health professionals that have received special training and volunteer their time, energy and resources.
Anybody who sees a need for Critical Incident Stress Management services can activate the system by contacting the 24/7 Health and Human Services operation center (701-328-0707) or State Radio (701-328-9921) and requesting the HHS Case Manager.
If you are interested in obtaining information regarding any of the following:
- becoming a member of the NDCISM Team,
- having somebody present information to your agency regarding the benefits of CISM,
- having somebody present at a local conference,
- or learning more about what NDCISM has to offer;
contact the NDCISM Team administrative team at 701-328-2270 or email dems@nd.gov.
ND Medical Reserve Corps and ND CISM Team Registration Form
NDCISM Team Information
If you are interested in joining the State CISM Team, please contact the Emergency Preparedness Unit, 701-328-0707, or complete the ND Medical Reserve Corps and ND CISM Team Registration Form.
EMS Regions | CISM Regional Coordinators | ||||
NW | NE | NW | NE | ||
| Bottineau | Benson | Michael Weyrauch | Scott Geiselhart | ||
| Burke | Cavalier | Ray ND | Fargo ND | ||
| Divide | Eddy | ||||
| McHenry | Grand Forks | ||||
| McKenzie | Pembina | ||||
| Mountrail | Ramsey | Assistant: | Assistant: | ||
| Pierce | Towner | Todd Olson | Gary Hardy | ||
| Renville | Walsh | Mohall ND | Cavalier ND | ||
| Rolette | |||||
| Ward | |||||
| Williams | |||||
| SW | SE | SW | SE | ||
| Adams | Barnes | Dan Ell | Vicki Berreth | ||
| Billings | Cass | Bismarck ND | Lisbon ND | ||
| Bowman | Dickey | ||||
| Burleigh | Foster | ||||
| Dunn | Griggs | ||||
| Emmons | LaMoure | Assistant: | Assistant: | ||
| Golden Valley | Logan | Marcy Dawson | Lucinda Nygard Lien | ||
| Grant | McIntosh | New Salem ND | Ypsilanti ND | ||
| Hettinger | Ranson | ||||
| Kidder | Richland | ||||
| McLean | Sargent | ||||
| Mercer | Steele | ||||
| Morton | Stutsman | ||||
| Oliver | Traill | ||||
| Sheridan | Wells | ||||
| Sioux | |||||
| Slope | |||||
| Stark | |||||
NDCISM Resources
NDCISM Team Informational Flyer: ND Critical Incident Stress Management Team - Providing Care for the Care Providers
First Responder Mental Health Outreach Program
- Upcoming Behavioral Health Trainings (free webinars, anyone can attend)
- Behavioral Health Division - Find Services
- Suicide Prevention Resources
- Behavioral Health Free Resources - Complete order form and resources will be mailed to you for free
- Print for use in your agency/facility.
NDCISM Education
Assisting Individuals in Crisis & Group Crisis Intervention Course (GRIN)
Date and Location: January 19 - 21, 2026; NDHHS Health Response and Licensure Office: 1720 Burlington Dr, Ste A; Bismarck, ND 58504
Course Description: A comprehensive, systematic, and multi-component crisis intervention curriculum will be presented to assist individuals and groups. Fundamentals of Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) will be covered, and participants will leave the training with applied knowledge of the SAFE-R model of individual crisis intervention and the group crisis interventions of crisis management briefings, defusings, and critical incident stress debriefings (CISD). Follow-up services and referrals when needed will be discussed.
This course is presented over 3 days and is only available to the first 40 registrants. Once the maximum number of attendees is registered, the application will be closed.
This course is jointly sponsored by the Behavioral Health Division and the Emergency Preparedness and Response Unit of North Dakota Health and Human Services.
Healing Ways: Group Crisis Interventions for Indigenous Peoples
Date and Location: February 24 - 25, 2026; NDHHS Health Response and Licensure Office: 1720 Burlington Dr, Ste A; Bismarck, ND 58504
Course Description: Language and diversity, gender roles, spiritual beliefs and practices, cultural norms, family structure, past life experiences, and historic cultural teachings all influence how Indigenous men and women are affected by trauma. The richness of historic traditional teachings resonates with Indigenous Peoples and is extremely important when guiding wellness in crisis intervention work. In this course, information on signs of distress, suggestions for wellness and healthy coping, and even the teaching style of the course emphasize traditional healing practices and lessons of the Medicine Wheel. The curriculum and information in this course are presented in a way that is culturally focused and honors the history of Indigenous Peoples in Canada and the United States. The Healing Ways Group Crisis Intervention skills provide a strategy for discussing the experience and some significant steps that can be taken for recovery from that experience that incorporates cultural teachings and the inclusion of Elders and Traditional Healers, prayer, smudging, and other ceremonies as a natural part of the intervention practices.
Indigenous communities differ in their beliefs, cultural practices and history. This curriculum is intended to be broad enough to be used by any Indigenous community whose intention is to incorporate the cultural practices and beliefs of their own people in their healing practices after highly distressing or traumatic experiences.
This course is presented over 2 days and is only available to the first 40 registrants. Once the maximum number of attendees is registered, the application will be closed.
Registration closes on 2/01/2025 or when the maximum number of attendees has registered.
HEALING WAYS REGISTRATION FORM