Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Firefighters Benefit from Crisis Intervention Counseling Certification

Becoming a firefighter is a tradition in my family. There have been four generations of firefighters in my family. Going through proper training and keeping up with specific qualifications can be almost as demanding as my job. With working long hours in a busy fire department does not always leave time for continued education through the more traditional methods. By continuing my education online has been a better fit for my busy lifestyle.

Getting my certification online in Crisis Intervention Counseling has helped me to continue my education. It was very important to me that I find a great online program, since my job, as a firefighter does not allow me to attend a traditional college. By continuing education online has enabled me to become certified in between working hectic hours at the firehouse.

The reason why I decided to enter into this type of program was to learn how to better help those that are affected by a disaster. Losing a home or loved due to a fire, car wreck or other natural disaster can have devastating effects on the survivors. By having the proper skills to help a person that is caught in this type of situation has helped made my job more rewarding. After all helping and protecting people is the main reason why I became a firefighter in the first place.

The programs that are offered by AIHCP have helped me to further continue my education as a firefighter. Not only are the programs convenient for those that work unconventional hours in their fields, they teach some of the most current applications in the health care industries. For these reasons have been highly recommending their programs to others that work in the emergency services or health care fields.

Having continued my education has helped me to better serve the public in almost every facet of my job as a firefighter. Since completing this course I am now better equipped to handle the personal aspects of my job. I feel that not only am I just a firefighter, am now a more productive member of my team during a crisis situation.


Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Online Pastoral Thanatology

The subject of thanatology deals with clergy or pastoral members who are educated to handle social, psychological and other aspects involving death. When someone passes away, it is a time of sorrow, grief and other emotions -- people will turn to pastoral counseling for a variety of different reasons and the pastor becomes a spiritual and emotional sounding board. Pastors educated in Thanatology are equipped to help people of varying faiths face the death of a loved one and can find assistance in end of life care, spiritual needs and mourning the lost loved one.

Grief counseling is a very delicate area and when someone passes away, the family is left shattered, overwhelmed and confused. It helps to have the support and guidance that only pastoral care can provide. People deal with death in different ways and grief affects everyone differently, churches know this and most now offer specially trained clergy members to help during this most delicate of times.

Thanatology is a specialized course of study and includes Death, Dying and Mourning, Grief Counseling for the Helping Professionals, Grief Therapy and Working with Grieving Children. When trying to find some help with grief counseling, be sure to find someone who has participated in continuing education classes for these topics.

It's quite a developed field. The programs offered are comprehensive and detailed and designed to meet the needs of the ever changing field of Grief Counseling. A Certified Pastoral Thanatology course requires the individual to have previously completed an official education program to prepare the person to practice Thanatology.

In some institutes, all candidates seeking to be certified in the field must either have a degree in one of the following fields: nursing, theology, ministry, pastoral care. The person must currently work in pastoral care under the supervision of a licensed clergy member, or a college level degree in human behavior fields, as well as have experience working with the dying.

Once a person has completed the certification it puts them in the unique position of being able to help the terminally ill, as well as their family members. Dying is a delicate and emotional topic for families and as someone approaches the end of life, there will be questions, concerns and the situation will be highly emotional. Pastors that complete this degree can help make the transition from death to dying much easier on a family to bear and make a real and valid difference in how grief affects a family.