Another Responder Suicide? Time for Justice!

It seems that every day I hear of another responder suicide. And with each, the rocks begin to fly. How did their department let this happen? How could their Chief be so unaware and uncaring? How could the department have failed them to let it get to this point?

Before you go get a rope and look for the nearest hanging tree, let’s look at some facts. I’ll argue that if you want to see who to blame, it’s as close as the nearest mirror. Who me? Yes, you! Well, to be fair you and me and every other first responder, former or retired first responder. Let us for just a moment look at some facts. Here and now. Just between you and I with no one else around.?

Our first reaction to a suicide is anger. Rightly so, it’s a terrible tragic ending with immeasurable waves of loss. The ripple effect it has goes beyond family and friends, beyond the department and community even impacting the entire profession. Yes let us be pissed off, very pissed off. So now that we are pissed, who gets the wrath of our anger? Well, the first target is obviously the Chief of the department. Okay, take a breath. Let’s look at this position for a minute. While all of us come up through the paramilitary structure of command. We are indoctrinated that the Chief is all powerful. The reality is, at best the Chief is middle management. Yep, that’s right only middle management with layers and layers of bosses and people that have to be appeased. They have limited resources, limited budgets and limited personnel to accomplish very limited and specific scope of power. For a Chief to argue for any need within their department, they need to prove a need that is specific within the mission, show what resources are needed to meet that need, and how it will benefit the community that they are sworn to serve. The cold hard fact is all of us that chose to be responders, swore an oath to the community we serve, not the other way around.

Okay, I see your blood pressure went up and you are getting pissed again. Take another breath.?So if not the Chief, the department, the peers, the union? All good answers and all share some responsibility. At the ground pounder level, we need to put some peer support in place. However, as I’ve said in other articles, these programs are a “bandaid”. These programs work to help before the trauma sets in. But do nothing if someone is suffering from a severe wound or complex trauma. Read my article “it’s not okay, to not be okay” https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/its-okay-living-post-traumatic-stress-injuries-first-steven-schreck/

If not the Chief, not the department, who? Yep, you! Well you and me. It is time to do some research. What legislation is being passed around the country that supports responders health, both physical and mental? How are communities and states funding the legislation? If the argument is money, here is something to consider. To recruit, train, equip, a responder is expensive. Very expensive, your department can give you the specifics but I think you’ll find that a responders first year on the job will be the most outlaid than any other in their carrier. In a world of “how much is this going to cost?”. The reality is responder suicide, responder Post Traumatic Stress Injuries and people leaving is expensive. When a department loses a responder, all the money that has been invested in the responder is gone and additional factor is all the money that is now needed to recruit, train, equip and prepare someone to replace them.?

This is a bigger issue than just your local community. Local communities rely on property taxes to fund community needs. It’s a hard sell to ask for other needs to be dropped or additional taxes. When a communities needs exceed local ability or resources, it is up to the state to step up and help. If the need exceeds the states ability or resources then it is time for the federal government to step up.

Now we get to the really complicated part…. What do we want? Money? Then the question is money for what? We need to have the discussion of what programs work and what is the clinical validation. We need to vet programs, endorse the programs that can show clinical success and we need to expose the programs that are scams and maybe even harmful. We need to build relationships and alliances with Politicians, clinicians, the different disciplines (Fire, EMS, LEO and dispatchers) and with each other (Career, Volunteer, City, County, State, Federal). We need grassroots efforts for Peer Support, Critical Incident Stress Management, and bridging local resources with the first responders.

We need you to stop being pissed off and start saying how am I going to stop responder Suicide? What am I going to do? We are the problem and we need to come together and unite to be the solution.

Steven Schreck Ret Batt Chief, Firefighter, EMT and advocate for responder mental health. I can be reached on LinkedIn.com?https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/steven-schreck-5649b395/