FROM THE HOTLINE COORDINATOR………..

When CISD/CISM was first introduced several decades ago, the ICISF established a “HOTLINE” phone number on a 24/7/365 basis, so that organizations or individuals needing assistance would have access to the limited number of teams that had been organized.  Because of the growing acceptance of CISM and more training being offered, more individuals getting that training, and more teams being established, the number of calls to this HOTLINE has been considerably reduced as local teams are more readily available to handle their own requirements and also, in some cases, provide assistance to other teams within their local areas. This HOTLINE number is still available; however, most of the calls for assistance now come directly to the ICISF office from organizations or agencies looking for assistance at larger incidents, from civilians needing help who have used the ICISF website, or from established teams who need assistance from other CISM teams or personnel.

                Currently there are 735 teams worldwide listed in the HOTLINE database. From this database ICISF has been able to provide referrals for many large local and major national disasters. Recently, however, fewer of these teams have supplied the up-to-date contact and activity information that ICISF requires on an annual basis.  Therefore, ICISF cannot always provide reliable information about many teams when called on to do so. As of today, of the 735 teams in our database only 174 have kept their information current enough to be reliable.  These teams are listed on the ICISF webpage under “CISM Teams/CISM Team Listing.”  Only those who have supplied information during the past year are on that list.

                If your team is not on the list, it is because ICISF does not have current information from you and has been unable to contact the team from the information we have. If your team is still functional and would like to be considered for referrals,  the team  information needs to be brought up to date, and your team should file a” Team Information Form”  annually. This form can be downloaded here.

For more information regarding your team’s status, please contact the HOTLINE Coordinator at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

April 14, 2011 gg