911 Wellness Foundation Campaign
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Have you ever wondered what would happen if you called 911 in the worst moment of your life and no one answered?
The 911 Public Safety Telecommunicators (PST) who answer our calls are people too. They are incredible people who face tremendous stress risks doing a job for us that most of us could not do, or would not want to do. In fact they typically do their jobs so well that we often take them for granted and never give them a second thought.
These 911 professionals are the Very First Responders in our most critical moments of life: when a mother calls panicking because her baby is not breathing; when your father or mine has just had a heart attack; or when the suicidal veteran calls with one last hope. Yet, intervening in these crises can take a huge toll on PSTs. A recent study found that between 17-24% of 808 telecommunicators acknowledge symptoms consistent with the diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD, Lilly, 2014). To put this in perspective, studies indicate that about 6% of our nation's firefighters may have PTSD. So 911 telecommunicators appear to be at more than three times the risk of of these field responders.
We all depend on 911. Will we help assure the well-being and peak performance of these telecommunicators?
This is the question that inspired the creation of the non-profit 911 Wellness Foundation (911WF). It is the only organization in North America devoted exclusively to protecting the well-being of our PSTs. 911WF is led by experts in mental health, the health sciences and emergency services.
The Foundation's mission is to foster optimal health, fueling resilience, peak performance, and a high Quality of Life for our 911 professionals through four Streams of Activity: research, education, policy, and intervention. (You can read more below about each of these activities.)
911WF is grateful to have gained the formal partnership of leading 911 organizations and pioneering health scientists including the National Emergency Number Association, the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch, and the Institute of HeartMath.
Inspired by a telecommunicator...
The Foundation's CEO and Board Chair, Jim Marshall, is a licensed mental health professional who has specialized in the assessment and treatment of traumatic stress and relationships for over 25 years. He became a 911 educator and advocate by the urging of his sister Deborah Achtenberg, ENP--a 911 telecommunicator (now retired). Debbie believed passionately that 911 professionals needed stress training driven by mental health expertise.
We hope you'll help Jim and the Foundation achieve our mission and assure the future well-being of our Very First Responders as they serve all of us! Your donation will go directly toward achieving this mission through our Four Streams of Activity. If you are ready to contribute now, please donate whatever you can afford, or if you would like to read more before deciding, then read on for more helpful information.
Our Four Streams of Activity...
RESEARCH is greatly needed to identify the impacts of acute and traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, chronic stress, and high-demand work conditions in the 911 workplace. And to identify specific strategies to prevent and resolve these risks. Very little of such 911 research has been done. Good science-based knowledge produced by such research is essential to the Foundation's other three streams of activity...
EDUCATION: we are committed to boosting awareness among all 911 stakeholders about 911 stress risks, workplace factors that increase stress, and practices that can optimize PST's health and performance. These stakeholders include the public, our policy makers, 911 technology firms, 911 leaders and yes, our telecommunicators! With your support, the 911WF's education efforts will lead to crucial advances in...
POLICY: in 2013, with help from the Foundation's leaders, the 911 industry established a new Standard on Acute/Traumatic and Chronic Stress. Since then, through national and state presentations and publication of articles in 911 journals, the Foundation has worked to advance this Standard. And 911WF wants to provide resources and assistance assuring all North American 911 centers implement local Comprehensive Stress Management Programs mandated in the Standard. Other local, state, and federal policies must also be advanced to foster telecommunicator's health and peak performance. Your donations will help make these programs a reality!
TREATMENT: The Foundation is devoted to assuring that all PSTs have access to Evidence-Based Treatment to heal stress-related conditions. 911WF created a Registry to connect PSTs throughout North America with therapists qualified to treat and help resolve their unique traumatic stress. You can help us build and manage this network of therapists who will serve the Registry.
Your donation, however small, will help us achieve this mission. So, thank you for taking time to listen to our story and for investing in the future of 911-- for all our sakes!
The 911 Public Safety Telecommunicators (PST) who answer our calls are people too. They are incredible people who face tremendous stress risks doing a job for us that most of us could not do, or would not want to do. In fact they typically do their jobs so well that we often take them for granted and never give them a second thought.
These 911 professionals are the Very First Responders in our most critical moments of life: when a mother calls panicking because her baby is not breathing; when your father or mine has just had a heart attack; or when the suicidal veteran calls with one last hope. Yet, intervening in these crises can take a huge toll on PSTs. A recent study found that between 17-24% of 808 telecommunicators acknowledge symptoms consistent with the diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD, Lilly, 2014). To put this in perspective, studies indicate that about 6% of our nation's firefighters may have PTSD. So 911 telecommunicators appear to be at more than three times the risk of of these field responders.
We all depend on 911. Will we help assure the well-being and peak performance of these telecommunicators?
This is the question that inspired the creation of the non-profit 911 Wellness Foundation (911WF). It is the only organization in North America devoted exclusively to protecting the well-being of our PSTs. 911WF is led by experts in mental health, the health sciences and emergency services.
The Foundation's mission is to foster optimal health, fueling resilience, peak performance, and a high Quality of Life for our 911 professionals through four Streams of Activity: research, education, policy, and intervention. (You can read more below about each of these activities.)
911WF is grateful to have gained the formal partnership of leading 911 organizations and pioneering health scientists including the National Emergency Number Association, the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch, and the Institute of HeartMath.
Inspired by a telecommunicator...
The Foundation's CEO and Board Chair, Jim Marshall, is a licensed mental health professional who has specialized in the assessment and treatment of traumatic stress and relationships for over 25 years. He became a 911 educator and advocate by the urging of his sister Deborah Achtenberg, ENP--a 911 telecommunicator (now retired). Debbie believed passionately that 911 professionals needed stress training driven by mental health expertise.
We hope you'll help Jim and the Foundation achieve our mission and assure the future well-being of our Very First Responders as they serve all of us! Your donation will go directly toward achieving this mission through our Four Streams of Activity. If you are ready to contribute now, please donate whatever you can afford, or if you would like to read more before deciding, then read on for more helpful information.
Our Four Streams of Activity...
RESEARCH is greatly needed to identify the impacts of acute and traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, chronic stress, and high-demand work conditions in the 911 workplace. And to identify specific strategies to prevent and resolve these risks. Very little of such 911 research has been done. Good science-based knowledge produced by such research is essential to the Foundation's other three streams of activity...
EDUCATION: we are committed to boosting awareness among all 911 stakeholders about 911 stress risks, workplace factors that increase stress, and practices that can optimize PST's health and performance. These stakeholders include the public, our policy makers, 911 technology firms, 911 leaders and yes, our telecommunicators! With your support, the 911WF's education efforts will lead to crucial advances in...
POLICY: in 2013, with help from the Foundation's leaders, the 911 industry established a new Standard on Acute/Traumatic and Chronic Stress. Since then, through national and state presentations and publication of articles in 911 journals, the Foundation has worked to advance this Standard. And 911WF wants to provide resources and assistance assuring all North American 911 centers implement local Comprehensive Stress Management Programs mandated in the Standard. Other local, state, and federal policies must also be advanced to foster telecommunicator's health and peak performance. Your donations will help make these programs a reality!
TREATMENT: The Foundation is devoted to assuring that all PSTs have access to Evidence-Based Treatment to heal stress-related conditions. 911WF created a Registry to connect PSTs throughout North America with therapists qualified to treat and help resolve their unique traumatic stress. You can help us build and manage this network of therapists who will serve the Registry.
Your donation, however small, will help us achieve this mission. So, thank you for taking time to listen to our story and for investing in the future of 911-- for all our sakes!
Organizer
Jim Marshall
Organizer
Ypsilanti, MI
