Early Intervention
Eye Movement Desensitisation Therapy
EMDR is likely more commonly known as a treatment for trauma and PTSD. This would imply that it is used for people when they are already unwell. This could not be any further from the truth. A variation or EMDR is EMD, which processes select recent disturbances.
EMD techniques can be used to target disturbing events, before they potentially manifest into PTSD.
Early intervention techniques are about the prevention of the development of further mental health injury.
Emergency services personnel (police, ambulance, fire) are in a unique position where they are regularly exposed to disturbing information.
That is not to say that they will develop PTSD, in fact, I find them to be an incredibly resilient group. Likewise, they are also human, and certain experiences can leave the emergency services worker feeling disturbed by that experience. This does not imply they have, or that they will develop PTSD.
The use of early intervention techniques can be used to prevent the accumulation of disturbances occurring from regular traumatic exposure. Below is a brief explanation of early intervention, within the framework of EMD techniques.
Group EMDR is different to debriefing sessions which people are more familiar with. It is also not like a group therapy session where people share their thoughts and feelings. No-one shares stories of trauma or disturbing events within the group setting. All of the trauma processing is done within the participant’s own minds. They don’t share their thoughts, feelings and experiences, thus there is also privacy within the group.
The work is done using a worksheet, and in collaboration with the facilitator, they process the disturbing memory.
Both R-TEP and G-TEP have been used widely across the world with refugees and survivors of disaster eg Syrian refugees. Research indicates that these protocols can effectively reduce symptoms of PTSD and depression in a little as 2 sessions.
R-TEP
Recent Traumatic Episode Protocol (R-TEP) is an early intervention Eye Movement desensitisation (EMD) therapy, developed by Elan Shapiro and Bruit Laub. The technique focuses on a recent traumatic event, where the person continues to be adversely impacted by that experience. Bilateral stimulation (BLS) is used, and a narrow focus is made onto specific points within a recent traumatic event. The processing of these events can prevent further accumulation of disturbances, thus reducing the risk of developing trauma and stress related disorders.
R-TEP fees
As per individual session, see the fees page for details
G-TEP
Group Traumatic Episode Protocol (G-TEP) is also an early intervention EMD therapy, which involves processing a recent traumatic episode within a group setting. This means more people can benefit from EMDR in a more timely manner, not having to wait for individual sessions with a therapist which often involves wait times. lt allows emergency personnel to process an event which they have experienced together. The group members briefly share one on one with the therapist but DO NOT share any material with other group members as the processing is set up without the need for this.
G-TEP fees
$70 / session. For those with a current mental health care plan from your GP, the Medicare item number for the group sessions is 80127 and the current rebate (at Feb 9th 2024) is $44.10, thus an out of pocket expense of $25.90 per 2 hour session. For those who may already have a mental health care plan, group sessions are in addition to the individual sessions; that is currently Medicare allow 10 group as well as 10 individual sessions per calendar year.
Some people may be funded by an organisation eg your employer. Let us know if this applies to you.