Public Safety is often a demanding, stressful career. On a daily basis, they are called upon to make life and death decisions in a split-second and have minimal margins for error. According to experts, the human brain isn’t hard-wired to deal with tragedy day in and day out. It’s because of that those same experts and doctors say it’s essential first responders are given resources to overcome and handle the realities of their job.
According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness:
• Nearly 1 in 4 police officers has thoughts of suicide at some point in their life.
• The suicide rate for police officers is four times higher than the rate for firefighters.
• In the smallest departments, the suicide rate for officers increases to almost four times the national average.
To combat the health hazards that come with public safety work, the Cedar Park Police Department is providing training to improve resiliency, mental health and well-being so first responders can maintain an enjoyable career and live a healthy life.
Resiliency Training for First Responders & Family will provide tools and techniques to cope with stress, tragedy and reduce the stigma around asking for help. This conference is for first responders, military, veterans, corrections officers, dispatchers, chaplains, retired first responders, professional staff, clinicians, and spouses of those in the public safety field. It will be held at New Hope Baptist Church in Cedar Park January 3-4, 2019 and is put on by 1st Responder Conferences and Blue H.E.L.P and hosted by Cedar Park Police and the Cedar Park Fire Department.
There are ways you can help with this conference: organizers are seeking donations for food and prizes, or you can sponsor a first responder so they can go free of cost.
For more information and to register, visit https://1stresponderconferences.org/
