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WELCOME TO
FIREFIGHTER BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ALLIANCE
FBHA is pleased to announce the rollout of
Peer Support Team Training
The 3 day class will be available starting
May 1, 2014
Stay tuned for more information!
NO matter what the scenario, you always need the support of your peers. Having eachother's back, no matter what, is key to a successful shift.
Please watch for details about our Suicide Survivors Camp, coming in 2014-2015. Family of victims please feel free to send us an email at info@ffbha.org if you are interested in this weekend retreat.
please read on...
In 2010, while educating firefighters across the United States, I began to notice through stories and reports about the number of firefighters who had taken their lives. I began to collect reports through a confidential reporting system in late 2010 through Counseling Services for FIre Fighters. After much research and effort, I realized this was a much larger issue than I thought, and expanded by starting Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance. I am now collecting this data through FBHA also. This confidential report can be found on the list at the left "ff suicide report" or at www.csff.info under the tab “FF Suicide Report”.
Starting January 1, 2013, I am gathering information Internationally.
The number in the boxes above are members who were active or retired firefighters who suffered deaths by their own choice. It should not be conceived as one of weakness but one where they might not have believed they had any other options to relieve their pain. FBHA is dedicated to collecting the most accurate numbers regarding FF suicides and then updates this number as information is confirmed. It is also FBHA’s objective to educate all of our brothers and sisters on suicide prevention through our workshop titled “Saving Those Who Save Others” in hopes to limit this number.
Regards,
Captain Jeff Dill
Founder of CSFF & FBHA
USA: Number is from information received from suicides ranging from the years 1880-2014. The total is comprised of 424 FF and 22 EMT/P. These are statistics of deaths reported. Actual numbers may be higher.
FBHA is pleased to share its enthusiastic
partnership with Safe Call Now. Safe Call Now, an innovative 24-hour crisis
referral program, was formed in 2009 in response to a need recognized within
the public safety community for a means by which police officers or
firefighters experiencing mental health issues or other personal problems could
feel secure coming forward to seek assistance. It is our hope that as a private
resource outside of their department, police officers or firefighters in crisis
will feel more secure to contact Safe Call Now for referrals to appropriate
counseling or treatment before problems escalate. There are many programs out
there to help ordinary citizens, but few exist to specifically help public
safety employees that selflessly give their energy, and sometimes their lives,
to help and protect all of us.
Help Save A Life Today!
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With generous support from the United States Fire Administration (USFA), the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) developed a comprehensive report addressing suicide in the fire and emergency services. Authored by Jeff Dill from the Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance (FBHA), the report,Suicide in the Fire and Emergency Services: Adopting a Proactive Approach to Behavioral Health Awareness and Suicide Prevention, explores various behavioral health concerns and dentifies resources and best practices for mental wellness and suicide prevention.
Please see link below:
http://nvfc.org/files/documents/ff_suicide_report.pdf
