Resilience Strategies for First Responders

Resilience Strategies for First Responders is designed for police personnel, fire department personnel, emergency medical personnel, communications officers, animal control officers, and code compliance officers operating in today's difficult environment. This course provides a comprehensive examination of the types of stress that first responders face, including intrinsic dangers such as depression, PTSI, and relationship issues, as well as the predictable changes and challenges in a typical public safety environment.

Since these issues impact the individual on a professional, personal, emotional, and physical level, this course focuses on developing a better understanding and learning strategies to regulate them for optimum performance. Particular emphasis is placed on developing survival strategies that allow for a healthy career in public safety and a long and enjoyable retirement.

Topics of Discussion:

• Statistics on the toll of a career
• The career "cycle"
• The science behind the trauma (hypervigilance, compensatory efforts)
• Understanding stress
• Specifics of stress for first responders law enforcement (compassion fatigue, PTSI)
• Burnout
• Addressing stress (physical techniques, relaxation response, EMDR, sleep, mental techniques, preventive measures

See video below for a preview!

Who Should Attend? Any law enforcement personnel, fire department personnel, EMS personnel, communications operator, animal control officer, and code enforcement officer. Spouses/significant others are welcome.

Moving Right of Bang: Critical Incident Early Intervention Strategies

In military terms, a critical event is sometimes referred to as a 'bang'. Scenarios such as an officer involved shooting or a traumatic injury or death involving an officer or a citizen create a 'bang' that impacts public safety personnel. Inserting the 'bang' into a timeline, 'left of bang' involves recognition, preparation, and being observant of incidents that impact employees. 'Right of bang' would be associated with actions taken after the critical incident occurs. Public safety departments should prepare for 'left of bang' and 'right of bang' and move forward to assist with resiliency, while identifying and deploying resources for officer/firefighter well-being.

This program educates leaders in public safety departments on how to create and conduct an early and effective intervention after a critical incident. The goal is to address potential risks to employees before they become issues for the individual, their personal lives, and the department. This interactive program includes scenarios and role-playing to strengthen your department's response to a critical incident.

Topics of Discussion:

• Using a scenario, respond to a model critical incident
• Identify stress responses to a traumatic event
• Define trauma, critical incident, and crisis intervention
• Apply tools your department has available
• Describe and apply components of a Critical Incident Early Intervention Strategy
• Evaluate strengths and identify areas of improvement for your department's intervention strategy

Who Should Attend? Police, fire, emergency services, emergency management, communications, and other government leaders who will be involved with interventions associated with public safety employees after a critical event. Chaplains and other counselors who work with public safety departments on emotional resiliency would also benefit from this program. While the program is not specifically designed for city leaders, human resources, and risk management personnel, they will have a much better understanding of critical incident intervention by attending this program.