033 - What the Heck is Behavioral Health? - With Dr. Ann Hawkins

Welcome to the De-Escalation Conversations Podcast! Today, we have a special guest, the Chief Innovation Officer at 1st MOMENT™. 

With a focus on transforming workplace culture through a prevention-oriented approach, 1st Moment bridges the gap between physical and behavioral health, and work comp incidents. 

Providing comprehensive care, 1st MOMENT™ aims to prevent incidents and foster well-being within and beyond the workplace. 

Let's prioritize prevention and create an environment where employees and their families thrive. Join us as we delve into their insights and expertise in reshaping workplace culture. 

Please join me in welcoming the Chief Innovation Officer from 1st MOMENT™.

[00:01:46] Podcast features Chief Innovation Officer of First Moment.

[00:04:18] First Moment is critical to managing incidents, reducing costs.

[00:10:00] Limited psychological services hinder First Responders being able to  help.

[00:11:21] Officer involved shootings led to PTSD.

[00:15:26] Tragic incidents, and 1st Moment service responds.

[00:20:50] People impacted lack tools; children confused. Government must act swiftly.

[00:21:57] Physician burnout, high suicide rate, lack of support.

[00:26:22] The impact of not prioritizing employee well-being.

[00:31:40] 24/7/365 availability for trusted, reliable help.

[00:35:14] Maintaining privacy while providing support and education.

[00:38:18] Visit https://www.theidea.world

IDEA - the International De-Escalation Association, is dedicated to Saving Lives, Reputations, & Relationships through Conflict De-Escalation & Communication Training for Teachers, Parents, and Public Safety Providers.

Find more about
How to Calm an Angry Person in 90 Seconds or Less
Come visit us at the IDEA website (International De-Escalation Association):
https://TheIdea.World

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Do you or your organization need Communication Skills and De-Escalation Training? You can reach us directly at: Team@TheIdea.World or by filling out a contact form at https://www.TheIdea.World/contact

Transcript

0:07

What's critical when when a department searches for a behavioral health program? What what do they need to to look for? So top of my list of Courses, somebody's got to be available 20 fourseven, 3 65. Your friend that had to wait 3 weeks, that's short. Right now, people are waiting from 4 to 6 weeks to get in and talk to somebody. So you 247, 365, you talk, we answer. And then finding a, a service that's available with clinicians that are trained to Specifically work with those people that see incidences that are not normal to the rest of us, That aren't aren't aren't in in in those jobs. And, of course, we're open 20 fourseven, 365, so you can call at any time. A company that's reliable, that's been around a long time, that's been in these individual pods during their 10 10 10 year in somebody that you know and trust and respect, but you're the number one issue is You call, we answer. San Diego 9 1 emergency. You need to come right away. There's a man with a gun and exploded. What's the point? That's the point.

Proceeding emergency signals from Before George, 11: 1:25

41. We got a white female down. We need paramedics, close plates. All available units will go that way. Welcome to the Deescalation Conversations podcast. Today, I have just an amazing lady, the the chief innovation officer at First Moment? With a focus on transforming workplace culture through a prevention oriented approach, First Moment bridges the gap between Physical Health and Behavioral Health and Work Comp incidents. They provide comprehensive care in First Moment aims to prevent incidents and foster well-being within and beyond the workplace? Meaning, their three sixty, just like we are here at idea with, it this stuff works at home. It works at work. It works when you go to the grocery store for a gallon of milk. And First Moment works to prioritize prevention and create an environment where employees and their families thrive, not just the employees, but the employees and their families because what you to have at home you bring to work? We all know that. So stick with us today as we jump into their Insights and expertise in reshaping workplace culture. And please join me in welcoming First Moment's Chief innovation officer, doctor Anne? Doctor Anne, welcome to the show. Thanks so much, Gary. It's Great to have that title. I can come up with all these cool ideas and other people help me put them together. It's perfect. And and as many hours that we as we have spent talking with for our listeners, doctor Anne and I were just one of those serendipitous moments, which I think are absolutely the best things in life, we were both at EMS World, And I happen to have a random conversation with somebody I was there with, and they said something about the wellness hub. I'm like, You know, I've been meaning to get over there, and I've only been here 3 days. So I had to hide and hold my butt over there, and I did. And there you were, you and your amazing husband? You you guys are both great. I liked you from the moment I met you, and you and I have spent a lot of time talking. The the thing about what you do, and what I'd like you to do first is just kinda give a brief overview of what first moment does and the the the impact that you can have with with people? Thank you so much. Yes. First moment we own the first moment. The first moment of any incident, Any accident, any thought is critical. And so we get in there at the first moment to help You take care of that incident that's going on and also that because whatever happens at that first moment, that's going to keep that incident on track And decrease the downline costs that come as something, continues to happen and you didn't take care of it. So it's 1st moment. What are we 1st moment for? We're forced first moment to help public safety, first responders, That's, academia, students, teachers, staff, that anybody that has work comp Or any behavioral health issues going on in their workplace, whether it's a department or a school or a corporation, We're there to help you and help keep your people focused, safe, and on the job. Okay. So when you talk about, you know, I'm I'm I'm just a dumb street cop. I don't I don't know anything. And so when you talk about incidents and work comp? What what what does that mean to me as as as as a as a police officer or a firefighter? How is First Moment gonna step in and help me? I understand you can help, you know, like, agencies and, you know, an HR person, a risk manager would be interested, but tell me how you're gonna help me as a cop, a firefighter, or school teacher? So the number one way we can help you is on behavioral health side. Cops see an average of 188 Traumatic incidences a year. That is about 1 every other month. And most People in service, they do not have a way out. You know, yes, you probably have a peer support group and you probably have a clinician you can go to and you probably have an EAP Program. But all of those, we you know this, Carrie. They don't get used. The fear of some somebody finding out That you talk to a clinician, that you want someplace for help. It just doesn t sit well with people and your, people are so afraid it s going to come back and Kick them in the butt when they're just trying to take care of themselves. So with our behavioral health programs, When you see an incident or a traumatic incident, whether it's physical, spiritual, or moral, you can call us 20 fourseven, 365, we will answer the phone and talk to you with clinicians that are specifically trained in dealing with trauma in dealing with people in service? We want to help you get that off your brain So you can begin to heal and stay on the job. Okay. I got you now. So what you're, in essence, doing is you are a you're not just a crisis line. Like, if if I need to talk through something or I'm having some some issues that I'm having a tough time dealing with or I just need I need to vent with somebody. You know, a crisis line rarely has trained clinicians? And I I think that's a key differentiator for First Moment, isn't it? A 100%. All of our clinicians are masters level, Trained by a, decorated vet. So been in the trenches, Know what they are doing. And the best news about our clinicians is they don't start start crying before you do. Oh, there's that. I hear that story over and over, Especially from those in service. And it's affecting teachers now because I was a professor for a long time, and it's just scary in the classroom now. And so they say the the worst thing I went to the clinician that I was supposed to. She was part of the group that we have. And she was crying 5 minutes into my story, and I just walked out. Yeah. Because the the story that the school teacher or first responder brings is so traumatic that the clinician is secondarily traumatized and they can't help you because they're in survival state at that point? Exactly. And, Yep. You can't go to command. Yeah. Go ahead. Yeah. No. So and I think we're kinda about to say the same thing, which has happened a lot with you and I. You're I heard you say you can't go to command. What do you mean? So, Because things are set up the way they're set up and the politics are the way the politics are, for you as a cop to go to your command staff And say, you know, stuff's going on in my head. I I don't know what to do. I don't know how to go who to go see. I I don't want to drive 40 minutes to go see somebody. I can't take the time off of work. So you basically, you're giving excuses for it to yourself For not getting help and you are kind of pushing that on to command staff? Or, and then if command staff has problems, where do they go? Do you know anybody in that command staff that would actually talk to their peer support team? Most of the time, they won't. And the other thing that that I just experienced because so a lot of our listeners know I I work on 2 different crisis hotlines, 60 hours, six zero hours a month? I mean, a full time job is a 160. I'm working 60 hours a month on these 2 crisis hotlines. One of them is copline.org, which is just for law enforcement and their families. And I was talking to somebody on Cop Line, they said, I can't go to my psychological services because I am in charge of psychological services, I coordinate it. And so if I walk in there, I feel uncomfortable doing that, so I need some other outside department resource. And and First Moment, if if that department contracted with First Moment, they wouldn't have that issue. Now? The the other flip side is what's the availability of psychological services? You know, I'll give a personal example. So I was on peer support team for San Diego Police Department for 22 years? And our our criteria for our peer support team is very unique. Mhmm. In that you had to have been responsible, your actions were directly responsible for someone dying. And so the vast majority of our team was had been involved in OIS's officer involved shootings. There there was a smattering of people. Like, 1 guy had, there was a pedestrian transient who had stepped out with a shopping cart, like, right in front of the patrol car, and it was a vehicle versus pedestrian fatal. And, we had a couple officers who had had an in custody death. And so, you know, there's this there was some different ones, but the vast majority, like 90 8% of the officers on the team were had been involved in officer involved shootings. And so we worked closely with our psychological services team in that. We worked hand in hand in that, and so I knew I knew all of them well. So for me, personally, it was almost like talking to that captain who oversaw the psychological services? And I should be theoretically be able to go to them first, but I knew that there there was just this internal, I don't know if I wanna do that. And then I just heard recently there was somebody who there was an officer who was just things had piled up, and he he called up the psychological services. It wasn't for San Diego PD. It was another agency. The large a large agency and said, hey. I need to talk to a clinician. And it took 3 weeks from the time of the 1st call until they finally talk to him? And I'm talking to this officer later. I'm like, Hey. How'd how'd everything go? He says, oh, my clinician is great. It but I was good by the time I talked to him. I didn't need him anymore. Like, well, thank god you didn't need them anymore, but holy crap. What if it hadn't gotten better? What if it just continued to get worse and you gotta wait 3 weeks? But with First Moment, you've got a wide enough network of these trained clinicians that I mean, you guys could almost call yourself first call because, like, you call and you're gonna be talking to somebody pretty quick. Right? So, Carrie, it's interesting because, originally, when we named it, it was responders 1st call. Oh, my gosh. That's funny. And so then as we grew and changed, we had multiple first calls. So we went to first moment because it's it gives better accessibility to all of our services. But, I mean, that's exactly what happens. I mean, And this data is pre COVID data because it's really hard to find mental health, behavioral health information, especially on people in public safety, but, first responders, 71% of them have never used their EAP program. I believe that. I I I don't know honestly, I don't know anybody in my 30 years with with law enforcement. I don't know anybody who did. Like, I can't think of, you know, Joe, Frank, George, Judy. I got nobody. We always talk about it. Oh, we have an EAP program you can refer them to. I remember going to supervisor school. Oh, no. Well, that's a step in dealing with a problem employee is offering EAP. I've never heard of a sergeant or lieutenant going, oh, yeah. Frank went over to EAP. You know, like And and actually what they do. I don't know. Honestly, I hope to I mean, this sounds bad. I shouldn't Shouldn't trash them because it's not their fault. I don't know. They they they just sit around, like, I got a cup of coffee here, and I'm just gonna sit there because nobody's walking in the door. Well, and the worst you know, you don't want to go to your HR person or your wellness team or whoever it is and say, you know, You know that 4 year old, I just dropped in that ambulance and the mom was dead at the wheel because it was a horrible, horrible crash. The 4 year old's on the way to the hospital. I don't know if he's gonna live or die. I don't know where the dad is. I'm never gonna get closure on this, but I'm good to go. And and that's and those and it's it's the I mean, this gentleman, that's loose in Maine right now. Right? Case in point, How many groups and organizations, including the people that he worked with in the service, said that this gentleman was having problems? You call, we answer. Our service is that simple. It's the first moment we call, You answer. We get you on the phone immediately with a clinician specialized in working with trauma, and we ll talk to you. And you can call back and talk to that same person. And if you want to do ongoing scheduled therapy with that individual, We can schedule that. And because we are a, per employee per month cost, it doesn't go on your health insurance. It's Yeah. And and that's important for a couple of reasons. And I didn't realize, I was having a conversation with my my personal doc one day, and we're talking about things, and he he said, yeah. If there's too much of this type of treatment, it can actually affect your rating. I'm like, what? I mean, it kinda makes sense, and yet at the same time, on the patient end, you don't ever you don't ever think about that. So let's let's shift gears for just a moment. So as we when I say shift gears, what I'm has had this thought. You know, this this, mass shooting in Maine just happened. So let's use that because that's it's it's it's it's new. It it really kinda is an an epitome example of where Firstst Moment Mhmm. Can be of of, huge help. So who would First Moment help with the the folks that responded to this main incident, just this this mass shooting? We we start at the top. We can help the mayor. We can help the mayor's staff because they're all getting things second and thirdhand. So we can get the mayor I gotta interrupt you, Anne. Why does the mayor need anything? The mayor is the leader. The mayor is at the top. The mayor is the person that people are going to for leadership. Okay. And if that mayor is so focused on the bad, nasty Traumas that are going on because we all know what happens when people get stressed or are in trauma. All of their physical issues get stronger and stronger when all their emotional issues just kinda go into the background. So in order to go ahead. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And I hate to to interrupt you. I'm bad about that, but you just kinda blew my mind because I'm I'm I'm thinking there's a ton of people that are getting affected that we don't think about. Honestly, you know, nothing against any mayors because I know there's some really great mayors out there. There's some crappy ones too, but there's some really good mayors who are doing the right thing, especially in small towns across America. And nobody I don't think anybody ever thinks of them because, you know, and it just made me think on peer support team, I never once thought when the police chief came to the hospital for an officer had been injured and this is completely ignorant of me. I never thought about pulling the chief aside, I I have pulled lieutenants and captains aside and checked on them. I never thought about checking on the Cheap. I don't know why that's, like, so cold hearted of me, but it was like, he's taking care of his stuff. I'm taking care of my stuff. We're we're we're the leaders in our own areas and and and, nobody's checking on on the folks, a lot of these folks so keep keep going because this is this is really expanding my mind. I love this. When you and when you talk about the chief and all the leaders, They're getting information 2nd or thirdhand. They're not there. They saw it on television, 911 operators. They never get closure on an incident. No kidding. They are kicked to the curb. On, now I'll say this. In San Diego, we would bring them in on the emotional debriefs, the the incident debriefs, and and that was they loved that, but I know there's a lot of agencies that still don't do that. So keep going, keep going, keep going. I wonder then. And all these people that have their impact, they took a psych class if they went to college Years ago, they don't have their tools to deal with it. And that you Terry, you know this. You're not gonna your your spouse at home and your 4 5 year olds Are watching all of this old on the television and they have no idea where daddy or mommy are. Not any different than than what's happening in the east with all of the people that have been captured. Nobody knows who's alive or who's dead. But talking everything works from the top down. So talk talking only to the people on the street, literally, in in in the departments, That's a great they need help very, very quickly in the moment. But it's the mayor, it's the Secretary, it's the medical director. I mean, I just got an article that doctors now, the burnout with physicians is sky high. In the state of Michigan after COVID, they expect the suicide rate for physicians to go up by 40%, four zero. A physician is who where and they're they're gonna go to the hospital psychologist. Knock, knock, knock. I just got finished with the surgery. You have 10 minutes? Nobody has that 10 minutes. If you If you if something's happening to you and you're in the middle of an incident, you're you're going into a fire. Your lieutenant pulls you out of that fire for some reason and you know that there's a dog in that house And you can't get to that dog? You're gonna go back to the truck, get on the truck, and go back in, and you're thinking about your Puppy dog at home and how much those kids love that dog. Right? But you're gone, and I'm just Putting boundaries up, it seems silly, but that's what happens. And And as as a as an officer, you see a 188 88 188 of those a year. Those are the big ones. Well, and the thing is that even if, you know, what what you're talking about, There's probably people who are like, I don't really like dogs anyway. Or there's people like, oh, I wouldn't feel that way. Well, you know, the the first time I lost a pet, I didn't expect it to affect me as strongly as it did. And and so but but even if you're not affected by in it in that way, it's a layer, and then stuff stacks up. And and and that's how a croissant is made. It's layer after layer after layer after layer, except this is a crap croissant. It's not a good croissant. The the trauma is okay. So, you know, something just occurred to me. There is people and still working with this main incident, when you think about the massive operation that's going on right now in this manhunt, there's people who are not directly in the field that are they're still gonna be affected. Right? Everybody to people in all the surrounding towns, people that have lived something like this With the other one we had where the gentleman who hid forever and ever in Pennsylvania, that's just retriggering all those memories again. I taught and coached at Columbine High School in the, boy, probably in the mid seventies. Every time there's a school shooting, guess what comes into my head? Yeah. Calm by. I'm giving away my age too, but calm by. And unfortunately, 70% of our thoughts that come in a day are negative, and we remember those. So when a pops up now, what's happening right now, all that escalates subconsciously is in your head. And so and you're going to go back to the station and go to sleep? Probably not. Yeah. Yeah. That makes sense. Makes sense. And when you call your spouse, what are you going to tell them? Yeah. I'm okay. Everybody's okay. Mm-mm. Yeah. So for sorry. Yeah. No. It's okay. It's just, I'm curious. What's let's shift gears again a little bit because we've got got a lot of people being traumatized, got a lot of people being affected, even if you don't go to the traumatized world. I'll be honest. There's sometimes that I it's almost like people going, I've been traumatized, it's almost been become so cliche nowadays that, oh, I gotta have a safe zone in my school because the that the teacher gave me a c instead of an a that I think I deserve, you know, so I'm traumatizing me to save some. It's like, oh, come on. You know, the term snowflakes was popular for a while for people that would just melt under any kind of you know, it didn't have to be direct sunlight. It was just warmth around them and they're like, so I wanna acknowledge that sometimes that traumatized word is overused, but let's just talk about how you're affected and and again, that that that layers of that crap croissant. But there's people like a secretary, he just popped into my secretary at a medical examiner's office who has to process all these death certificates on top of their normal workload. So it's it's it's just again, it's it's these added layers that that add up that, by themselves, not a big deal, but things add up over time. And so with that kind of as a as a foundation for this, my next question, What's the financial and cultural impact of a department that's not looking out for their people, an agency or a school district that's not looking out for their people and so there's some, you know, to some emotional behavioral health that's not being addressed? What's the financial and cultural impact of that? So the financial impact, is is crazy for first responders in general. Let me just check this. So the cost of nonfatal injuries probably because people 80% of injuries now across the workplaces are Initiated because of of a behavioral health issue, 80%. Wow. Okay. In fire and, in fire, A a a town and community spends anywhere between $1,600,000,000. That's what we spend as a on a as a country. Each department, the cost ranges anywhere from 50,000 to $200,000. And per firefighter, The cost of non fatal injuries runs between 1500 to $6,000 per firefighter a year. A year A year. For firefighter? Mhmm. So just do the math in your head. He's a company of a100. Holy crap. That's a boatload of money. And and and first moment now, one of the things that surprised me when we talked, I thought you guys you know, everybody hears about insurance premiums. I look into insurance now that I'm I'm retired? I'm, like, I get scared. You guys are not outrageously expensive. No. We, we're very very affordable. I mean, for and I just I'll I'll give you Ballpark, but, we're not close to the $50,000 a year per firefighter. In fact, for a department of, I mean, we We we can we we work with people basically right around that 9 to$12 per employee per month. 9 to $12 per employee per month, and I can pick up the phone if I'm one of those employees. And do I get, like, half an hour with the clinician? What what do I get for that 9 to $12 among Whenever you're finished talking, they're finished listening. So I can pick up the phone at any time, Talk to a trained clinician who's been specially trained to work with folks in my industry, whether it's, you know, as a first responder or school teacher. And I I can just pick up the phone, and it costs me nothing out of pocket because the agency is paying this 9 to $12. Is that right? Exactly. Exactly. And and yes. And so then we we can also add on those ongoing consultations. That's a little bit of an additional cost, but not much. And then, But it's just it's it's simple. I mean, for we can do it for teachers. We can do it for students. We can do it for faculties. And, I mean, when I talk to a potential client, I usually ask for the mayor to be on the phone. If I don't have the support of that mayor in this program, it's not going to work. Which and and that makes sense. That makes sense. So But Let's let's say a department. Let let's say I I I I wanna steer my department toward this or I I I work in an area where I'm a be making a decision about having a conversation with you about it, what's critical when when a department searches for a behavioral health program? What what do they need to to look for? So top of my list, of course, is somebody's got to be available 20 fourseven, 365. Your friend that had to wait 3 weeks, that's short. Right now, people are waiting from 4 to 6 weeks to get in and talk to somebody. So you 247, 365, you talk, we answer. And then finding a, a service that's available with clinicians that are Trained to specifically work with those people that see incidences that are Not normal to the rest of us that aren't aren't aren't in in in those jobs. And, of course, we're open 20 47, 365, so you can call in Anytime, a company that's reliable, that's been around a long time, that's been in these individual pods During their 10 10 10 year and somebody that you know and trust And and and and respect, but here the number one issue is You call, we answer. So many times when you got on a program, you'll get in, you'll get a call center, and then you'll get a callback From an 888 number that you don't have any idea who it is and you can't call back because it won't go through. Hate is And when you finally get the wherewithal to ask for help, you don't need it in 2 hours. You need it now. Yeah. That's powerful. That's powerful. Basically unlimited. I mean, we don't and then what we also do is we let you know As a school, as a department, as a corporation, what people have called in about. We can't tell you who they are because that's a HIPAA thing. But we can tell you. So if we're getting stress, anxiety, even financial, Divorces never happens in the services. Right? Cops never happens. Firefighters never happens. Yeah. We're gonna let you know so that you can start a prevention campaign. And My whole background and doctorates in the why wellness programs work, we're don't get a program for Pregnancy. If you don't have any women on your on in your that you're working with that are gonna get pregnant. I mean, we can create help you create A program specific to what we're hearing from your people. That's pretty cool. And, and so Go ahead. So so this is, this is new information, and it's basically an EMS study in 2022. The top EMS concerns are psychological safety, the ability to speak freely without repay a a reprisal. Everything we do is confidential. It will never, ever be told to anybody. And then there The the other big concern is violence, violence from the patient. I mean, via, emergency room nurses Probably are one of the most attacked individuals in the hospital. And then mental health, eighty Percent of response, of of of the responders had concerns about their mental health. So, we're not sweeping it under the carpet anymore. And we don't want the whole world to know that you are having problems. You don't want your spouse to know you are having problems. We won't tell them. And we'll we'll get on the phone with you and your family and your spouse, because If we can begin to educate those younger children and we can talk to children 1 on 1 as long as we have the, signature of of of of of the parent or the guardian, but the sooner we can get those kids to understand that the feelings that they have Are more normal than the Pollyanna? It's fine. Everything's just fine. The better we the sooner we can become a society that's just a little bit more balanced and begin to totally change the culture To a more caring environment. And that's pretty cool. And I love that the confidentiality part, you know, that you're not gonna get dimed off for for what you're talking about and you can actually open up and be be honest about what you're going through to get the help that you need. That's pretty darn cool. You know, we can actually coach you on how to tell tell your spouse or talk to your spouse. Oh, that's that's powerful. That's really powerful. Doctor Anne, you you you have so many great things, and and and we're we're reaching the end of our time for today. Will you be back on the show for us? Would you would you honor us with that that gift of your time again? Sure. I'd love to. It's just so fabulous to work with other people That are spreading the word and I mean, it's a cliche now, but it's okay not to be okay, but it's not okay to stay there. Love that. Love that. Well, for our listeners, please check out First Moment. The contact information for doctor Anne is in the show notes. So if you're driving, don't worry about it. It's there for you? And, doctor Anne, why don't you give us your, website for the people that are listening and not watching the video part of this? It's 1st moment .com, one stmoment.com. 1 the num the numeral one Number 1, number 1, s t moment. Dot com. So Okay. We're first we're first in. We want to help. I love it. I love it. Love it. Alright. Folks, also check out the the idea. World for information on de escalation, conflict resolution, and relationships in leadership? We have tons of resources available for you. And if your agency is interested in having a further conversation, please reach out to doctor Anne if you're interested in at firstmoment.com, one st.com, one stmoment.com, and the idea dot world for de escalation conflict resolution, leadership, and relationships? Until next time. Please Stay safe. Thank you. I hope you found a lot of great value in this episode of the Deescalation Conversations podcast. Please be sure to go to our website, theidea.worldtheidea.world. On that website? Just click on the link that resonates with you most. If you're a k through 12 educator, if you're a firefighter, medical services, law enforcement, flight attendants, whatever industry you're in, we have specialized training for you. So check that training out because, literally, it can save your life. It can save your relationship. It can save your career. So check out The Idea Dot World, and I look forward to seeing you soon. Take care.