2023 ANNUAL REPORT-FINAL

69

EMERGENCY SERVICES

Behavioral Health Program

Firefighting is a stressful and demanding profession. DFRS recognizes that firefighters experience unique stressors and offers specialized support and services to assist with these stressors. As a routine part of the job, firefighters are exposed to highly stressful, demanding situations. While our firefighters are well-trained to handle the demands of the job, stress and trauma can pile up. We want firefighters to be proactive about their wellness, including their behavioral health, throughout their career. DFRS offers a spectrum of services to promote and support behavioral health, including a full-time Behavioral Health Coordinator and a Peer Support Team. The behavioral health program background and programmatic highlights for the BHC and Peer Support Team are discussed below. In April 2022, DFRS hired a Behavioral Health Coordinator (BHC) to continue efforts to promote behavioral health, wellness, and resilience in our firefighters and their families. The BHC position exists through an innovative partnership between DFRS and The Frederick County Health Department. Administratively, the BHC falls underneath the umbrella of the Frederick County Health Department and does not report to anyone within the Fire and Rescue Chain of Command. The BHC is a licensed mental health professional, who provides education, consultation, support, short-term counseling, behavioral health care coordination, referrals to vetted clinicians and other resources, and follow-up. The BHC also provides clinical oversight to the DFRS Peer Support Team. These services are in addition to, not a replacement for, already available services, including Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and private, community-based resources. All services are offered at no cost to DFRS staff, volunteers, and their immediate family members. Services are voluntary, strictly confidential, and available at no cost to DRFS staff, volunteers, and their immediate family members. The goal of the behavioral health program is to support and enhance the wellness of DFRS. This is accomplished through education, resource curation, and delivering clinical behavioral health services. While clinical services following difficult calls are an important piece of the services this program provides, they are not exhaustive. Individuals contacts, including consultation, assessment, triage, counseling, referral, case management and follow up, and relationship development with staff is foundational and critical. Behavioral Health Coordinator (BHC)

Since the program’s inception, critical infrastructure for the program has been established, and several important milestones have been achieved.

• In collaboration with the Frederick County Health Department, created and implemented necessary policies and procedures for program delivery. • Established simple, clear modes of accessing the BHC. We recognize that having the fewest steps for getting assistance, accessibility, and flexibility is critical. The BHC promptly answers all requests for assistance directly. • In the first 18 months of the program, over 100 firefighters and their families were served. • Hundreds of clinical contact hours were delivered, including assessment, individual counseling, referrals, and follow-up.