Focus on Mental Health in September

September 6, 2022

More firefighters die from suicide than in the line of duty. September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, a call-to-action to focus on behavioral health and suicide prevention in your fire or EMS department. Being proactive now by educating your responders on the risks, learning the warning signs, and providing resources for help can prevent future tragedies.

The national Suicide and Crisis Lifeline recently launched a new number at 988. Make sure everyone in your department has this number in case they are struggling and need immediate assistance from a crisis counselor.

The NVFC also provides these resources to support responder behavioral health:

• The Directory of Behavioral Health Professionals is a listing of local providers who are equipped and ready to help firefighters, EMS providers, rescue workers, dispatchers, and their families. It is updated monthly as new providers are added.
• The Share the Load program features resources and tools to help emergency responders and departments address behavioral health and wellbeing.
• The Psychologically Healthy Fire Departments: Implementation Toolkit provides guidance to leaders on how to support the wellbeing of their members. A free training is also available in the NVFC Virtual Classroom.
• The NVFC Virtual Classroom contains courses and webinars you can provide in your department to train members on important behavioral health issues. All courses are free for NVFC members, and webinars and select courses are free for everyone.
  • First Responder Resilience: How to Bounce Back – Free for a limited time!
  • For Those Who Love a First Responder – Free for a limited time!
  • Putting Out the Fire: Stress Resilience Strategies
  • Stress & Life Management: Finding Your Life Balance as a Volunteer
  • Behavioral Health for the Fire Service
  • Addressing Substance Abuse, PTSD, and Other Concerns in the Fire Service
  • Preventing and Coping with Suicide in the Fire and Emergency Services – Free for a limited time!
  • Webinar: Resiliency – Preparing for and Bouncing Back from Difficult Calls
  • Webinar: It Could Never Happen Here – Suicide and the Volunteer Fire Department
  • Webinar: Strategies to Increase Behavioral Health Support for Your Fire/EMS Department
  • Webinar: Reset and Recharge – Taking Care of Our Mental Health in Uncertain Times
  • Webinar – Reset and Recharge: How to Manage Stress in Uncertain Times