The following is a news release for all firefighters
North American Fire Fighter Veteran Network on the web at firefighterveteran.com will be in attendance at a symposium on suicides in the fire service to be held on July 12th and 13th in Baltimore Md. The symposium is hosted by Everyone Goes Home Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives Section 13. Leading researcher/practitioners will be in attendance including representatives of the following fire and EMS constituency organizations:
International Association of Fire Fighters, AFL-CIO
International Association of Fire Chiefs
National Volunteer Fire Council
National Associations of EMS Physicians
National Fire Protection Association
North American Fire Training Directors
Women in Fire and Emergency Services
National Association of Fire Chaplains
Key Presenters include:
Thomas Joiner, Ph.D.
The Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor of Psychology
Florida State University
Matthew K. Nock, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Psychology
Harvard University
Leading authority on epidermiology of suicide with prior research in public safety populations
Alan L. Bermann, Ph.D.
Executive Director
American Association of Suicidology
Authority on current best practices in suicide prevention programming
This is an historic opportunity to finally start the rig rolling in the direction of suicide prevention and understanding in the services.
The first step in addressing the issue is to invite leading researchers and practitioners with established expertise to help us set an agenda for building consensus models. North American Fire Fighter Veteran Network on the web at firefighterveteran.com has been identified as being part of the overall discussion. We will be there with our F.I.R.S.T. S.T.E.P. H.O.P.E. program along with the introduction of a new model program titled "F.I.R.E.S. Within". Firefighter Increased Risk Exposure to Suicide.
Additional information will be posted after the symposium on firefighterveteran.com
Get connected to stress education and understanding under section 13 of Everyone Goes Home of the Fire Fighter Life Safety Initiatives from the National Fallen Fire Fighter Foundation
Shannon H. Pennington
North American Fire Fighter Veteran Network
care for the caregivers
Ex IAFF 26 year Career firefighter