(Air1 Closer Look) – The fires are out. Suspects are in custody. Ambulances, gone. All is calm. But who helps heroes of public safety when their grueling workday is done? Enter, Crisis Response Care.
“Our goal from day one is to come alongside,” says CRC director Pastor Mike Henderson of K-LOVE Radio. Crisis Response Care offers dozens of free, expert workshops on self-care for first responders. Classes include titles such as Enhancing Resilience, Managing Relationships During a Crisis and Psychological First-Aid. Discussions take on the harsh realities of grief and trauma and encourage peer support for suicide prevention.
Since the community outreach began more than 10 years ago, CRC mental health experts have trained more than 22,000 first responders nationwide. Who can attend? “It’s chaplains, it’s first responders, it’s police, it’s fire, it’s nurses, it’s doctors: it’s anybody who wants to help somebody during a crisis.” Many CRC courses count toward required certifications for police, fire and EMTs, satisfying their precinct obligation to get continuing education credits. Volunteers and employees of such elite disaster relief groups such as Billy Graham Rapid Response Team and Samaritans Purse have also completed CRC courses.
CRC trainers have traveled to dozens of cities over the years and due to the pandemic added video (zoom) conferences in 2020. Outside of in-person or online conferences, the CRC website also offers free videos, personal stories, tips and suggestions on coping with stress or burnout -- and even an article listing 15 Tips To a Better Night’s Sleep. Materials are fine-tuned to address the unique experiences and needs of men and women on the front lines of critical incidents.
“As one officer said,” recalls Pastor Mike, “’you give us the tools for our tool belt, so we can go out and do what we need to do.’ ”
SAMPLE TRAINING VIDEO: CRC Training Phase 1
