Page 42 - APRIL 2019 FOP MAGAZINE

Mental Health and Wellness Support
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A message from EAP
Professional Counseling Division CPD Employee Assistance Program
312-743-0378
Widely trained clinicians and addiction counselors available 24/7/365
Peer Support Team
312-743-0378
The peer support team includes 300 officers who have taken a 40-hour training
Call for help
Suicide prevention is an everyday need
D t h o t L
a d t
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o t l w j
w c t w e
s Each month, the Professional Counseling Division of the Department’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) will provide a t
message to promote better mental healthcare for officers. This month, the message focuses on suicide awareness and pre- p vention.
A day devoted to education about police suicide awareness and prevention brought more than 200 CPD members to a sem- inar at the old McDonald’s Hamburger University in Oak Brook
on Feb. 21. But, really, suicide prevention and awareness have to be an everyday occurrence for Chicago Police Officers.
The U.S. Department of Justice indicates that the suicide rate for Chicago Police Officers is 60 percent higher than other police departments across the country. Six CPD offi-
cers have taken their own lives since July 2018.
Numbers that might be more compelling come from the Pro-
fessional Counseling Division of the Department’s EAP. In 2018, EAP’s emergency services responded to more than 600 calls be- tween the hours of 5:30 p.m. and 8 a.m. Those calls required an immediate intervention by an EAP staff member, perhaps a sign that the caller was thinking about suicide.
Every year, the utilization of emergency services goes up, ac- cording to Dr. Robert Sobo, director of the Professional Coun- seling Division. He adds that utilization has increased 300 per- cent since 2010.
Whether it’s a topic of discussion at a seminar or at any given roll call in any given district, suicide prevention and awareness
must take place long before any officer feels suicidal.
“Suicide prevention is really about officer wellness,” Dr. Sobo explains. “It is the responsibility of members of the police cul- ture to make talking about the consequences of the job a coura- geous and daily habit, just like you would check in every day to make sure your firearms and other equipment you need to be
safe on the job are in working order.”
Suicide prevention and awareness have become a high pri-
ority for the Department. It is mandatory training for all new hires in the academy. All FTOs, sergeants, lieutenants, captains, commanders and officers above those ranks are required to take training.
Much of awareness and prevention focuses on the signs of personal and professionals issues that might cause officers to harm themselves. Those signs might include feelings of de- pression or hopelessness, promoting a feeling that a situation is futile. Other signs are lack of sleep, change in temperament, change in hygiene and loss of interest in things that used to make you happy.
“Awareness and prevention are also about how to have the discussion with somebody you think needs help, what to do if you suspect something is wrong and how to call EAP, of course,”
42 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ APRIL 2019