“I personally am tired of getting phone calls from firefighters who say, ‘my therapist just fired me because she is being more traumatized by what I'm telling her than what she can handle.’ ”
That’s Dr. Deborah Beidel, the clinical director of the Florida Firefighter Safety and Health Collaborative. She’s provided counseling to first responders at the scene of Orlando’s Pulse nightclub shooting in 2016 and at the 2021 condo building collapse in Surfside.
When she realized how unfamiliar counselors might be with the daily life of a firefighter, she helped design a curriculum. What resulted is called the Clinician Awareness Program, which aims to help providers be better educated and more effective in treating firefighters when they come in for counseling.
It made a big difference recently for some local clinicians.
Last month, the program came to North Collier Fire & Rescue. Twenty five mental health clinicians experienced what it’s like to be a firefighter during a two-day immersion course.
The first day of the training was in the classroom, and on the second day the clinicians dressed in turnout gear, experienced a smoke-filled training scenario, used the fire hoses and practiced rescue techniques. The clinicians also do a 10-hour ride-along with a local agency so they can see the firefighters at work and get absorbed into the culture.
“This is probably one of the greatest experiences ever. No one understands what these firefighters and paramedics and EMTs have to go through. All kudos to them. My appreciation for them has grown immensely,” said Alexia Perkins, a Fort Myers-based counselor who completed the training.
“One of the issues that we hear a lot is the clinicians don't really know too much about the occupation. So most of the first two sessions with the firefighters, it's mainly information on their occupation,” said David Perez, a firefighter at North Collier Fire & Rescue. “Having the clinicians here is going to be a huge opportunity for them, huge opportunity for the firefighters, and I think it's a huge win for mental health in the fire service.”
“This is probably one of the greatest experiences ever. No one understands what these firefighters and paramedics and EMTs have to go through. All kudos to them. My appreciation for them has grown immensely."Alexia Perkins, Fort Myers-based counselor
Leaders at North Collier Fire & Rescue were eager to bring the training to Naples because two of their retired staff died by suicide about a year and a half ago.
“It made us realize the importance of mental health,” said Perez. “We had to take a step back and actually realize that we're not invincible. No one is free from this. And so we have to take responsibility and come up with a plan and try…. to make our department better overall and shine a light on it.”
Perez also has personal reasons for advocating for mental wellness. He was diagnosed with cancer about four and a half years ago. When he was preparing for a stem cell transplant a few years later, he decided it was time to seek out a therapist to help process everything he was going through.
“Honestly, it’s the best thing I’ve ever done. Mental health is something now that I can push forth on our guys and let them know that it's okay. It's actually extremely beneficial. I tell people that it gives us a different perspective,” said Perez. “If you're lucky enough to find the right [therapist], they can shine the light and give you a new hope.
Rob Neuberger, the Clinician Awareness Program coordinator for the Florida Firefighter Safety and Health Collaborative, is helping Florida’s program go national. The Alabama Fire College took the class in Orlando, and now they are doing their own clinician awareness program this month. The program has also helped firefighters in Portland, Oregon, and the collaborative is putting together a program for the National Fire Academy in Maryland.
“It's about sharing it so we can get it out to everybody,” Neuberger said.
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