1“Models of Crisis Care.” June 12,
2021.https://canvas.liberty.edu/courses/422509/pages/watch models-of-crisis
care? module_item_id=45550353.
2 Ibid.,
Best Practice in Pastoral Crisis Care
There are many strategies and models identified in this week’s module reading and
studies that would be beneficial for pastoral crisis care ministry, in addition to providing best
practices in pastoral crisis care.
According to this week’s presentation “Models of Crisis Care,”1 the two crisis care
models “Pastoral Crisis Intervention” and “Psychological First Aid” both search for ways to ease
the preliminary distress arising from a crisis with a goal of elevating short- and The Pastoral
Crisis Intervention model or PCI is constructed around a crisis care system titled SAFER-R that
involves five components. The first of the five components is stabilization, a progression that
involves an introduction of oneself to the person in crisis with an explanation of one’s role during
the crisis event. The second component is to recognize the event by paying attention to the who,
what, and when of the occurrence story. The next component deals with facilitating
understanding through the encouragement of articulation of troublesome feelings and assisting
them with figuring out the effect of the critical event. The encouragement of effective coping is
the time to identify personal stress management tools and techniques, which comes as the fourth
component of PCI. Lastly, the component of recover or refer, a concept that an individual after
the crisis experiences individual progress, ascertains new meaning in life or distinguishes living
life from a new normal mentality.2
3 Kollar, Charles Allen. Solution-focused pastoral counseling: an effective short-term approach
for getting people back on track. Zondervan, 1997.
4 Ibid., 236
5 Johnson, W. Brad, and William L. Johnson. The Minister's Guide to Psychological Disorders and
Treatments. Routledge, 2014. Pg. 10.
In Kollar’s publication, Solution-Focused Counseling,3 he looks at a variety of problem-
focused counseling models, each with its own proponent. One of the many that Kollar talks
about is cognitive counseling. He defines it as a model established on the conviction that beliefs
are straightforwardly associated with how we feel. So, with that model in mind, counselors seek
to help counselees recognize distorted types of thinking that may cause emotional distress, rather
than emphasizing the problem. The key focus is on how the present mindset of a counselee may
be the cause of the emotional distress.4 Kollar also mentions in his publication the cognitive
counseling model most used by many Christian counselors because it reflects the admonition
features of scriptural revelation.
What I have observed through our class textbook written by Johnson and Johnson is that
troublesome and dysfunctional ideas, feelings, and behaviors must be addressed in some way in
order for mental health treatments to be effective. In addition to this, effective treatments often
incorporate self-control, practicing new skills, insight, and the expectation of a positive outcome.
Also, process variables that consistently predict positive therapy outcomes include therapist
personal qualities, therapeutic alliances, and clear, informed consent.5
IN HIM
Patrick Scales
