Mental health issues are a growing concern among police agencies and other first responders, as there is more awareness of the mental and emotional strain these professionals face on the job every day.
The Estevan Police Service (EPS) is among those placing an added emphasis on the mental health of its members, and they have turned to Special Constable Shari Sutter to take the lead on this initiative.
Sutter discussed the training she has gone through for the Road to Mental Readiness (R2MR) program during the April 28 meeting of the Estevan Board of Police Commissioners. She told the police board there has been a lot of media coverage on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among officers, members of the Canadian Forces and others.
Estevan police Chief Paul Ladouceur and his counterpart in Weyburn, Marlo Pritchard, made a decision to have someone trained to teach the program to officers.
鈥淭his was designed by the military, as they didn鈥檛 want their team members brought down by PTSD,鈥� said Sutter. 鈥淪o they started this course to give them a chance to self-evaluate.鈥�
The Calgary Police Service picked up on the concept to bring it into the policing world, and the RCMP followed suit.
Sutter took the training over five days in Regina last year. Each day had 10 to 12 hours of sessions. At the end, Sutter was a certified trainer for police officers.
Since last year, Sutter has been offering two courses for members. One is eight hours in length, and is for chiefs, inspectors and sergeants, since they are in leadership roles. The other is a four-hour session for constables, communications officers and office staff.
Sutter distributed a pamphlet on the Road to Mental Readiness program to police board members and the media. A mental health continuum model is divided into four colour-coded areas.
Green is considered healthy, and the normal baseline for the public. Yellow is classified as reacting, and might be brought about by the death of a loved one, or an illness in a family that can result in significant changes.
Orange is for injured, which is usually for people who have had several traumatic events in short succession, and there hasn鈥檛 been a chance to return to normal. Red is for ill, and could be marked by depression or anxiety. It鈥檚 the area the EPS and other agencies want their members to avoid.
鈥淚t is a tool for how members can self-assess after they鈥檝e been through a traumatic event,鈥� said Sutter.
As for special constables and office staff, they can get to know the officers and their families, and whether the officers are involved in sports, if their children are involved in sports, or if the officers are taking care of their parents.
If anything changes dramatically in the officer鈥檚 life for at least two weeks, then Sutter touches base with them, and makes sure everything is all right.
鈥淚t really is a tool, and everyone that has taken it, so far, has really liked it, because it is set up to be really simple,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 need a counselling degree to understand where you are in those colours.鈥�
Only a few members of the EPS have not been trained. Eight people in Weyburn haven鈥檛 received the training. Sutter expects they will have by the end of June.
Sutter also showed a couple of videos to illustrate the need for the program. One depicts an officer who responds to the scene of a fatal accident, and the impact it leaves on the officer.
The other video shares the story of a dispatcher who receives a call about a domestic dispute, and hears the complainant get stabbed to death by her husband. Not only did the officers have to respond to the scene, but Sutter notes the dispatcher suffers the pain from handling the call.
鈥淚t鈥檚 good to be able to know your team and the healthiness of them, and what鈥檚 normal for them, so we can all take care of each other,鈥� said Sutter.
The R2MR also offers four steps that officers and others can take when dealing with a critical situation: goal setting, visualization, self-talk and tactical breathing.
鈥淲hen they鈥檙e in a crisis, they can plan through it quickly, and get themselves through as healthy as possible until they can get back to the office or home base, and we can sort it out as a team,鈥� said Sutter.
It鈥檚 important to note that each officer will handle a situation differently. Some will be okay after witnessing something traumatic, and can cope with it, but others will not. She stressed an officer won鈥檛 lose their badge if they ask for help. 聽
Sutter has a degree in social work with a minor in psychology, and she has worked as a child protection worker, with a young offenders unit and in the schools.
Ladouceur noted Sutter is very compassionate and brings a unique skill set to the EPS due to her background.
鈥淭here are things that members see on a daily basis, and that the public isn鈥檛 necessarily privy to, nor would they want to in a lot of situations,鈥� said Ladouceur.
Recently, local officers have dealt with incidents involving shotguns and machetes. Traumatic situations are not limited to Toronto and other large centres, he said.
鈥淔or the longest time, we鈥檝e kind of swept it under the carpet, and said 鈥楽uck it up, buttercup, and get on with your day,鈥� and away we go,鈥� said Ladouceur. 鈥淲hat we鈥檙e realizing is all the times we鈥檝e brushed it under the carpet, it builds, and builds and builds, and we鈥檝e seen more and more on the news of officers taking their own lives because of this buildup.鈥�
There has been discussion of sharing the program with the Estevan Fire and Rescue Service, and Sutter believes it would also be beneficial for Estevan鈥檚 firefighters.
