21st Century First Responder Chaplaincy: What Is Required of First Responder Chaplains Today?

First Responder Chaplaincy for the 21st Century

First Responder Chaplaincy for the 21st Century should be able to effectively reduce the number of First Responder (police, Fire, EMS) Suicides.

“In order to serve the ever-increasing needs of first responders, 21st century First Responder Chaplaincy must become a profession recognized by its peers in both chaplaincy and the first responder community. If FRCs want to be effective chaplains, advanced-level training will become the new minimum core competency…

…There are four critical issues facing First Responder Chaplains (FRCs) in the 21st century:

• Building more effective relationships with First Responders and civilian employees (Evans, et. al., 2018)
• Development of more effective education and intervention tools for suicide prevention (Heyman, et. al., 2018)
• Building educational tools and training programs to mitigate the effects of secondary traumatization within families of First Responders (Hirshfield, 2005)
• Movement toward a national standard for First Responder Chaplaincy (Cadge & Skaggs, 2018)…

…We [First Responder Chaplains (FRC)] are still working on finding a best practice for Suicide Prevention and Intervention (SPI). We know from FRCs working with police and fire that chaplains are trained on the topic of SPI; however, if the FRCs don’t build a relationship with the officer or firefighter before the critical incident occurs, neither will think of the chaplain before either contemplating suicide or attempting to complete it….

…All the best practices and chaplain training in the world will not be utilized by an FRC unless they have established at least an acquaintance with the officers, firefighters, dispatchers, EMS personnel, and civilian employees of the public safety agency they serve, BEFORE a critical incident occurs…

First Responder Chaplaincy is as much an art as it is a science….

….The art of chaplaincy is knowing what to look for in an individual. Not all pastors make good First Responder Chaplains, and not all good First Responder Chaplains are ordained clergy. During recruitment, the staff chaplain or volunteer manager must know through observation and intuition whether the applicant possesses a calling to First Responder Chaplaincy. The applicant may lack the ability to actively listen or may speak about themselves throughout the entire interview. These applicants will not be successful as an FRC, even if they receive proper training.

The science of chaplaincy is the knowledge we receive in training that we can use successfully in the field. The training can be in Emotional and Spiritual Care, Crisis Intervention, Disaster Care, Compassion Fatigue, Secondary Trauma, Legal Aspects Chaplaincy, Ethics, Contact with First Responders, Face Time with First Responders and their Families, Long Term Recovery, or Suicide Prevention and Intervention. Even learning basic tenets of other religions (especially around death and burial rituals) and knowing how to intervene with those of no religion, are just some of the tools we can acquire as First Responder Chaplains...

…Regardless of whether someone is brand new to First Responder Chaplaincy… [or] ha[s] been a First Responder Chaplain for 20 years, learning new tools and how to use them in appropriate situations is a continuous process.” [1]

From "Para-Professional" to "Professional"

How am I using the term "para-professional". It is NOT the difference from being a Volunteer First Responder Chaplain or a Paid First Responder Chaplain. I am using the term "para-professional" in the context of whether First Responder Chaplaincy Programs have GRANTS made available not only for First Responder Chaplain Programs, but for First Responder Chaplain (NVOAD Disaster Chaplains being deployed to a federally declared disaster by FEMA).

In the aforementioned described context, through the lens of Organizational Development, to move First Responder Chaplaincy from “para-professional” status to “professional”, three (3) initial items must occur:

• Creation of National Standards and Testing
• Establishment of a Peer Review Process
• Development of Academic-Style Research of First Responders, First Responder Chaplaincy through accepted White Paper standards and article submissions

This will be the foundation upon which First Responder Chaplains can move toward an accepted and recognized professional chaplain by peers such as Healthcare Chaplaincy (inclusive) who are Board Certified Chaplains (BCC), First Responders, Licensed Mental Health Professionals (psychologists & social workers), EAP Professionals, National Disaster Organizations, NVOAD Organizations, state legislatures, and Federal Grant Programs.

A clear, concise, and well-defined scope of practice must include:

• Crisis Intervention using National standardized tools to deliver Emotional & Spiritual Care consistently, regardless of where a First Responder Chaplain serves organizationally or geographically
• What a First Responder Chaplain can and cannot do legally, ethically, and morally
• Clearly defined delineation between a First Responder Chaplain and the work of EAP personnel, psychologists/social workers, and clergy in general
• Definition of First Responder Chaplain as a licensed or national credentialed (minimum competencies & curricula along with minimum hours of classroom training and of field training)
• Defined Ethical Values and Standards to which all First Responder Chaplains must adhere
• Other items yet identified, which will distill the role of First Responder Chaplain vs other Professional (and paid) Chaplains (Hospital, Palliative Care, Trauma Center, Hospice, Corporate, Industrial and Flight Chaplains, and crystallize and solidify a First Responder Chaplain as a Professional.

Becoming a Professional

This is one view of many ways to which First Responder Chaplains (especially the Volunteer First Responder Chaplains, which composes a rough estimate of 90-95% of all First Responder Chaplains) can become "Professional", which in this context would provide a path toward organizations developing GRANTS specifically for First Responder Chaplain Programs and Disaster Response Chaplains deployed through NVOAD organizations, which in turn could help cover at least the Volunteer First Responder Chaplains needs such as:

• Funds for providing PPE, Chaplain Gear, Chaplain Uniform, etc.
• Funds for Public Safety First Responder Agencies (police, fire, ems) to provide service vehicles for commission to Volunteer First Responder Chaplains
• Funds to provide insurance liability and medical insurance for First Responder Chaplains when actually "on-duty"
• Funds for providing reimbursement for travel, lodging and per diem expenses when deployed through an NVOAD organization
• Funds for a Training Budget for Volunteer Chaplains (currently almost all chaplains pay for their own training, credentialing, annual memberships fees to their credentialing organizations, membership fees to other training organizations (such as ICISF )
• Other needs as required by First Responder Chaplain Programs to allow First Responder Chaplains to build relationships with First Responders and their Families

From the graphic above is a list of 2021 First Responder Line of Duty Deaths (LODD) and Suicides. "...We are still working on finding a best practice for Suicide Prevention and Intervention (SPI). We know from FRCs working with police and fire that chaplains are trained on the topic of SPI; however, if the FRCs don’t build a relationship with the officer or firefighter before the critical incident occurs, neither will think of the chaplain before either contemplating suicide or attempting to complete it. As of [2019], suicide was the #1 killer of police officers and firefighters [2], followed by line of duty deaths. Despite this, some FRCs are either not taught the topic at all, or they may have been taught to employ the knowledge for a different audience, and they can’t adapt it to First Responders." [3]

We will not be able to reduce the number of suicides among First Responders until we realize it will take a comprehensive approach including:

• Initial training on suicide and suicide prevention to First Responders during their Academy Training
• Training to prepare spouses of First Responders going through Academy how much their home life will change once their spouse in Academy graduates and becomes a Firefighter, Police Officer or EMT/Paramedic
• A Collaborative approach between the Chaplain's Office in an agency and the agency's EAP
• Moving the EAP out of an Agencies headquarters to a descrete location at least 5 miles from the Agencies headquarters (there is still a stigma related to mental health and officers nor firefighters want their colleagues to see them going into an EAP office for assistance, and therefore never receive the help they need which could prevent becoming suicidal
• A program by the Public Safety Office to offer alternative FREE confidential counseling to First Responders besides EAP at vetted counseling organizations approved by the local Public Safety Boards
• The recognization by not only First Responder Agency Command, but also EAP, that Chaplains provide a viable third alternative to First Responders (especially during ride-alongs)

"Police officers experience traumatic events throughout their career called critical incidents. A study conducted by Chopko, Palmieri and Adams (2015) found that on average, law enforcement officers experience 188 critical incidents in the course of their career. In response to critical incidents, officers can develop negative coping mechanisms, experience symptoms of and/or develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and develop other co-occurring psychopathological disorders." [4]

One Critical Incident in a lifetime can cripple some mentally. Can you imagin experiencing 188 Critical Incidents in the course of your career? Until we begin to understand the extent of pressure, critical incidents, lack of sleep, home life issues life issues, along with all the other "normal" life challenges are being experience by our First Responders, we will never be able to reduce the number of suicides. We will never be able to reduce the number of suicides until we recognize we need a comprehensive approach, rather than piecemeal approach to helping First Responders. A comprehensive approach means having one critical lynchpin being Professional First Responder Chaplains with a clearly defined scope of practice which ensures we have well trained First Responder Chaplains who can be relationship builders, active listeners, and the knowledge to know when a referral to a Licensed Mental Health Provider may be required by a First Responder.

First Responder Chaplains work inter-agency and inter-jurisdictionally more frequently for undeclared disasters in our own backyards (Las Vegas Shooting, 2017 ). This type of inter-agency and inter-juridictional work requires First Responder Chaplains work together, have the same base level knowledge of Incident Command, Crisis Intervention, etc.). This is what it takes for First Responder Chapalincy in the 21st century. But for First Responder Chaplains to do this vital work, we must recognize throughout our Agencies and Credential Organizations, the need for some level of common knowledge - standardization. It also means our First Responder Chaplain Programs will require Funds (Grants) in order to give Volunteer First Responder Chaplains the tools and training to be successful without pulling out of the Volunteer Chaplain's pocket.

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End Notes

[1] Heyman, Dill, and Douglas, “The Ruderman White Paper on Mental Health and Suicide of First Responders”, ?2018, Ruderman Family Foundation, section on White Papers and Research

[2] Wolfe, Jeffery B, “First Responder Chaplaincy for the 21st Century” article, published in Spiritual Care Association’s bi-annual Magazine “Caring for the Human Spirit [tm]”, Spring/Summer 2020 Issue, Copyright ? 2020, Jeffery B Wolfe and Spiritual Care Association, All Rights Reserved. To read the complete article, visit https://spiritualcareassociation.org/.../cfthsm_spring... .

[3] Ibid.

[4] Dockstader, Jessica, "What is the extent of the mental health crisis in law enforcement?", published 10 May 2019 by the International Public Safety Association in their "Public Safety Column" on their website (see https://www.joinipsa.org/IPSA-Blog/7334025 )

About the Author

Fr Jeff is the Director of the Spiritual Care Association's First Responder Chaplain Division (Fire, Police, EMS, and Disaster Chaplains); a Crisis and Trauma Specialist (CTS); a Contributing Editor, Writer, and content provider for ChaplainUSA.org; Adjunct Professor for the SCA University of Theology and Spirituality; a Chaplain with the Indiana Guard Reserve (IGR), under 81st Troop Command as a member of the Chaplain Corps (US Army protocol) and a graduate of the IGR MP Academy; a member of The American Institute of Stress (https://stress.org); a member of the Military Chaplains Association; and a Hon. Ambassador for Senatus Consultum “Conscritus Electus”, a global Think Tank

In addtion, Fr Jeff is a Franciscan (Old) Catholic Priest serving the Diocese of the Epiphany in Indianapolis; Vicar General and Director OCCI Office of Chaplains (https://chaplains.myocci.org); Contributing Editor, Writer, and weekly Law Enforcement Chaplain inspirational & educational content provider for CHAPLAINUSA.ORG; Former Former Training Coordinator, Developer, Lead Instructor, and Field Training Officer for the first IMPD Chaplain Academy; a member of the Hendricks County Indiana Medical Reserve Corps (MRC); a member of the Hendricks County Indiana MRC Executive Committee: and, a member of Hendricks County Indiana Crisis Response Team.