On-site and Virtual Peer Support Trainings for Groups

The content, focus, and duration of any presentation can be easily customized to suit the particular interests, needs, and size of each agency request as well as the budget of the host organization. Trainings typically combine lecture with extensive audience participation and group interactivity, and include concrete takeaway messages, relevant handouts, and carefully vetted resource information.   These presentations may be offered virtually and onsite.  *Please note: A minimum requirement of 25 attendees is required for us to schedule live trainings on-site.  To schedule a consultation, simply send us a message or give us a call to consult with us about your organizations needs and if our services are a good fit.

2-Day Peer Support Training For Departments & Agencies

is designed to prepare emergency service personnel, healthcare providers, and other advocate agency responders with the ability to not only recognize and learn to manage stress but how to provide a low level of psychological intervention to fellow colleagues who may be at risk.  This training teaches first responders to function as the first layer of psychological help and support for their fellow peers.  Peer supporters often provide a warm entry into taking the next steps to accessing the next level of support when needed. The training addresses caring for fellow first responders following critical and traumatic incidents,  grief & loss, mental health crises, other life stressors, as well as work-life challenges that individuals face. The class encompasses protocol and expectations for each team and its members, builds listening skills, and enhances communication and problem- solving skills. The Wellness and Resilience component of the training focuses on activation of  healthy coping mechanisms and resilience skill building for individual, couple, family or peer support use.

• The Foundations of Peer Support​
• Mental and Emotional Health Issues Related to Emergency Responder Stress
• Unpacking Stress, Traumatic Stress, & Recovery Elements
• Managing Grief & Loss
• First Responder Suicide
• Keys for Confidentiality/Listening Skills and Attunement Training
• Peer Support Team Construction Strategies Workshop
• Rest, Recovery, & Resilience Strategies for First Responders
• Beyond Peer Support: Gathering and Vetting Resources for First Responder Care

Mitigating the Ripple Effects of Personal and Family Stress

 Explore the most common daily life stressors that impact first responders.

Experiential exercises are used to activate learning to identify stress reactions within yourself and your peers.  Participants will learn to recognize and understand the needs of individuals affected by stress so that they may engage in more helpful peer support interactions.

Beyond Peer Support:  Which support is the right support?

Peer support is one resource but what happens when a person’s concerns are more complex?  This workshop will help peer supporters learn about resources available to first responders beyond peer support and EAP by understanding the range of therapeutic options: Professional, Adjunct, Alternative, and Adaptive supports, as well as creating and vetting these support resources for your department.

Foundations of the Family Support Team

The harmful effects of stress caused by disasters, mass casualties, officer-involved shootings, and other critical incidents impact spouses, family members, and loved ones.  This workshop will cover how volunteer personnel associated with the department in a part-time, unsalaried, non-sworn capacity are trained to help spouses and families to minimize the adverse effects of critical incident stress.  This is an extension to peer support training

Understanding the Role of ACES in First Responder Culture

As peer supporters, having awareness on how the impact of early life experiences yields potential long-term implications in the areas of health, relationships, life success, and resiliency.  A landmark study in the 1990s found a significant relationship between the number of ACEs a person experienced and a variety of negative outcomes in adulthood, including poor physical and mental health, substance use, and risky behaviors. The more ACEs experienced, the greater the risk for these outcomes.  This workshop enhances awareness about toxic stress from childhood experiences that may exacerbate current life stressors and experiences of cumulative stress that first responders may encounter in their work roles.  Screening with ACEs to offer specified support is a global tool to help determine the best course of action to support peers.

Shifting Culture: Integrating the Peer Support Training Model for New Hires

The prolonged nature of the COVID-19 pandemic has created organizational urgency for agencies and institutions that employ frontline workers to find feasible options to support the health and mental wellness needs of their staff.   Technological advances have made it possible for teams to remain connected with interactive training, self-assessment programs, or hybrid interventions utilizing in-person and online interfaces that have helped make resources accessible to agencies that are dependent on an active workforce to help others.   This workshop explores integrative tools available to develop and engage new hires and trainees to take active steps to establish and maintain ongoing mental wellness and resilience practices at the onset of their careers.  Recommendations support mental health initiatives that decrease the incidence of posttraumatic stress, suicide risk, depression, anxiety, and relationship issues. This training is geared to support peer support coordinators and leadership to assess which elements are appropriate for integration based on staff and organizational needs.