George W. Doherty, MS, LPC
George W. Doherty, MS, LPC, resides in Laramie, WY where he founded the Rocky Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Institute, Inc. He is currently employed as the President/CEO of this organization and also serves as Clinical Coordinator of the Snowy Range Critical Incident Team. He has been involved with disaster relief since 1995, serving as a Disaster Mental Health Specialist with such incidents as the Union Pacific train wreck in Laramie, Hurricane Fran in North Carolina, the Cincinnati floods in Falmouth, KY, and Tropical Storm Allison, TX. He served as Supervisor for Disaster Mental Health for flash floods in Ft. Collins, CO and spent a month as the Red Cross Disaster Mental Health Coordinator for western Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane George. He has extensive experience conducting CISM debriefings with first responders and others and is a member of a national crisis care network, providing assistance to companies and other organizations following critical incidents involving sudden deaths and similar traumatic events. He has also published numerous articles in disaster mental health and traumatic stress publications and served as Guest Editor for 2 Special Editions of the journal Traumatology (1999 & 2004). George served as an officer in the US Air Force and served 11 years in Air Search & Rescue with Civil Air Patrol (an Air Force Auxiliary) in WY. He is a Licensed Professional Counselor in private practice and has been an adjunct instructor for a number of colleges, including Northern Nevada Community College and the University of Wyoming. George is a Certified Practitioner/Lecturer – POST, member of American Counseling Association (ACA), Associate member American Psychological Association (APA), Life Member Air Force Association, Life member Military Officers Association of America. |
From Crisis to Recovery: Strategic Planning for Response, Resilience, and Recovery
Synopsis: Crises affect people on many different levels, including psychological well-being. The 2004/2009 tsunamis, hurricanes Rita and Katrina, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are among events continuing to affect millions of lives daily. Potential events like Avian and Swine Flu pandemics, global warming/climate change and threats of spreading unrest in the Middle East are concerns weighing heavily on all. Planning and coordination are important components of responses to crises, disasters, and critical incidents. Resilience, recovery from crises, community preparation, learning from past experience, and strategically planning for future events are all activities involving education, training and time of first responders, behavioral health professionals, chaplains and others. Additional response variables include cultural knowledge and sensitivity. We need to
respond appropriately within a culture not our own, whether locally, nationally, or internationally.
The purpose of a behavioral health plan is to ensure efficient, coordinated and
effective responses to behavioral health needs of affected populations during times of disasters
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