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Q: What are the signs of compassion fatigue in peer support team members — or even in myself? A: This is a very important question, and one that every peer support team should be talking about openly and often. The inescapable fact is that if you do this work long enough, you’ll realize that compassion fatigue is a normal occurrence. Not a failure. Not a weakness. A normal occupational reality of caring for people who are carrying heavy loads. Listening to coworkers vent and process their personal struggles, professional frustrations, and sometimes significant trauma can be a heavy burden to carry — especially if you are naturally empathetic. Many peer supporters are the very people who feel deeply, care deeply, and show up consistently for others. That is a strength. But it also requires intentional maintenance. Because of that, teams need to build support structures and provide awareness training regularly. Compassion fatigue should not be a surprise topic that only [...]

Source Data: Correctional Employee Testimonials & Feedback The following statements were gathered from seasoned correctional staff in response to the question: “How would you describe your experience with a supportive supervisor?” These insights are shared here with their permission. These statements are categorized into five key pillars of supportive leadership: Empowerment and Autonomy Communication and Active Listening Empathy and Personal Connection Professional Development and Accountability Integrity and Team Collaboration Executive Summary The feedback provided below by staff highlights a clear shift away from traditional “command and control” management toward supportive, relationally-based leadership. Employees do not just want a manager; they want—and, in fact, need—a mentor who balances high accountability with deep empathy. Key Findings The Trust Loop: Trust is described as a reciprocal relationship: when a supervisor trusts an employee's expertise, the employee feels confident and empowered to take initiative and grow. Person-Centric Communication: Support is defined by “checking in” rather than “checking up.” Simple gestures, like asking about a family member or remembering a past conversation, are seen as [...]

As we continue our 2026 focus on building a positive corrections culture through leadership, supervisor support, and daily behaviors, I want to formally introduce a concept I originated about 3 years ago: Retention Intelligence. At first glance, some may assume this is simply a rebranded version of emotional intelligence. It is not. Retention Intelligence goes deeper—and in today’s corrections environment, it is anything but a “soft skill.” Our industry is facing unprecedented staffing shortages and turnover rates. Departments are losing millions of dollars to recruitment, overtime, training cycles, and preventable liability. Remaining staff are losing work–life balance. Risk is increasing. The mission of corrections and rehabilitation is compromised. In this climate, Retention Intelligence is not optional. It is operationally critical. Beyond Emotional Intelligence Emotional intelligence matters. Communication matters. De-escalation matters. Crucial conversations matter. Leadership development is trending across every industry. But here is the uncomfortable truth we all know: The newest, shiniest corporate leadership model cannot simply be dropped into a prison [...]

As we continue our exploration of effective supervision within the correctional environment, we are excited to introduce “Retention Intelligence”—a concept and term originated by Stephanie Rawlings. While this framework builds upon the foundational skill sets of Emotional Intelligence (EI), it encompasses a significantly broader sphere of leadership competencies tailored specifically to the unique demands of correctional work.Two Critical MissionsIt is vital to remember: Correctional Officers serve as the frontline guarantors of both agency safety and humane treatment, yet they remain a chronically under-resourced population. Because of this, supervisors occupy a critical vantage point and carry out a dual mission:Operational Excellence: Maintaining the high standards of safety and humanity required by the agency.Strategic Advocacy: Actively enhancing the well-being of their staff—thereby directly increasing the likelihood of long-term retention and organizational health.Stay tuned for more on this subject!

In 2016 and 2017 Professor Natasha Frost and her colleague, Carlos Monteiro conducted two ground-breaking studies through a National Institute of Justice grant on correctional officer suicide and officer wellbeing at the Massachusetts Department of Correction. Here is a summary of their findings. 1. Suicide Rates Among Correctional Officers Are Significantly Elevated Across the Massachusetts DOC studies (2010–2015), correctional officers died by suicide at rates of approximately 105 per 100,000, 7 to 7.5 times higher than the national U.S. average of ~14 per 100,000, and markedly higher than other first-responder groups, indicating an occupational health crisis. 2. Officer Suicide Is Caused by Multiple Factors and is Driven by Both Personal and Occupational Conditions The research findings emphasize the interaction of personal vulnerabilities (mental health history, relationship strain, financial stressors) with occupational drivers (chronic stress, mandatory overtime, exposure to violence, institutional distrust, and disciplinary pressures). These findings refute the notion of single-cause explanations. 3. Correctional Operational, Organizational and Traumatic Stressors Are Key Contributors Officers reported cumulative [...]

Q:My hostage negotiation/crisis team trains many overlapping concepts with peer support training—active listening, de-escalation, etc. Can I just send my peer support team to that training? A:Yes … and no. There’s no question that special teams training builds valuable skills. Active listening, emotional regulation, and de-escalation are essential across corrections, and cross-training can absolutely sharpen awareness and competence. That said, we caution agencies against relying exclusively on hostage or crisis team training to prepare peer support team members. Here are some reasons why the distinction matters. 1. Different context, different mission Hostage and crisis teams operate in a fundamentally different environment. Their objective is to neutralize an offender-based threat—often under intense time pressure with significant safety risks to others. Communication skills in this context are designed to extract information, influence behavior, and move rapidly toward resolution. Peer support, by contrast, exists in a non-threat, employee-to-employee context. While active listening skills may look similar on the surface, the intent behind their use is very different. [...]

This article emphasizes the need for understanding, empathy, and compassion for staff involved in critical incidents when reviewing and investigating their response to threats or violence. There’s a well-known movie called Sully, starring Tom Hanks as the pilot of the “Miracle on the Hudson” flight that went down with zero casualties. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger was celebrated unlike almost any other hero I had seen up to that point in my life—talk shows, guest appearances, parades, parties, galas, concerts. The message was clear: this man saved lives, and we were grateful. However, in the movie—released years later—we are shown a very different side of Sully’s journey. Most notably, we see the investigation conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board into his decision to land the aircraft in the Hudson River rather than turn back and attempt a landing over New York City skyscrapers, in a post-9/11 world. At the conclusion of the inquiry, the panel informs Sully and his co-pilot that [...]

Q: Are specific policies necessary for a Peer Support Program, and, if so, which policies are considered essential? A: Using the analogy of a Peer Support program as a building, policies act as the scaffolding, providing support while defining its structure, dimensions, and key properties. So yes, policies are essential, critical in fact, for a sound Peer Support Program that can be of help to staff while promoting high-quality services, protecting all involved, and reducing legal liability to the agency. Here’s a list of what we at Desert Waters consider key peer support team policies, to be reviewed at least annually by all concerned and updates as needed. Peer Support Team (PST) Leadership & Structure PST Oversight (Administrative, Legal, Chain of Command) PST Policy Writing PSTM (Peer Support Team Member) Supervision – Clinical PSTM Supervision – Operations PST Scope Eligibility for PST Services Procedures for Accessing PST Services PST Procedures/Operations—Location, Time Frame, Frequency Of Use, Limits To Use, Etc. PST Membership [...]

Purpose and ScopeCorrectional staff—especially officers—are often most emotionally vulnerable immediately following an assault. Such incidents can shatter their sense of safety and personal invulnerability. Before an attack, individuals may believe, “It won’t happen to me,” or assume, “If it does, I’ll handle it.” After an assault, however, self-confidence may be profoundly shaken. During the assault, officers may have experienced sheer panic and terror, thinking they’d get killed. And now they may be feeling shame and humiliation, particularly if they froze, fainted, or lost control of bodily functions. Compounding this, surges of rage may follow, leaving individuals feeling emotionally overwhelmed and out of control.How administrators respond to the assaulted staff member in the moments following the incident is crucial. Their approach can either facilitate healing or deepen the trauma, making the difference between recovery and further emotional harm.This article addresses evidence-informed ways supervisors and administrators can support assaulted employees immediately after an incident. The guidance is intentionally limited to administrative support, stabilization, and [...]

I’m a little ashamed to admit that it took me until my mid-forties to finally understand how working in a corrections environment had been shaping—and often sabotaging—my daily functioning. And for the record, I didn’t even know what “functioning” meant at first. It’s a simple concept, yet I managed to make it so complicated that I couldn’t wrap my head around it. But maybe that’s exactly the point. When the easy things slowly become hard—sometimes impossibly hard—that’s when Corrections Fatigue starts showing up in ways people outside the profession can’t begin to imagine. And not only people outside the profession—many people inside it, who are deteriorating themselves, often deny what’s happening because accepting the impact feels too threatening, too real. To really understand what this looks like, let me take you back to a particular phase of my life in my early thirties: a young mom, working full-tilt in corrections, and trying to keep up with expectations that made no sense for any [...]