GILBERT, AZ — Gilbert police are highlighting resources available to support employees dealing with stress and trauma as a new grant helps expand first responder wellness programs across Maricopa County.
Gilbert police logged more than 19,000 calls for service in July. Sgt. Mark Worden said officers can encounter everything from routine traffic violations to child deaths, homicides, drownings, domestic violence and officer-involved shootings.
The focus comes after a recent stretch of critical incidents, including an officer-involved shooting involving Gilbert officers. Days later, the East Valley Critical Incident Response Team began investigating an officer-involved shooting in Mesa, with Gilbert police serving as the lead agency.
"There's a lot of different things that officers face in their career, from child deaths, officer-involved shootings, to homicides, drownings, domestic violence," Worden said.
Gilbert police said it established a full-time peer support and wellness unit in 2018. Worden said the team is available around the clock following critical incidents. Employees also have access to counseling and programs focused on physical fitness, sleep and nutrition.
The department also works with Boulder Crest Foundation and its Struggle Well program, which focuses on post-traumatic growth and helping first responders navigate stress and trauma associated with their work.
Worden said about 100 of the department's more than 500 employees have gone through the program.
"We want those people that are serving others and taking care of others in our community to be coming from the best possible version of themselves that they can," said Rob Brandt, western regional director for Boulder Crest's Struggle Well program.
Boulder Crest says a new $600,000 grant from The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation will help expand its work with first responders across Maricopa County.
For Worden, the goal is to give employees resources to manage difficult experiences throughout their careers.
"Everybody struggles," Worden said. "It doesn't matter if you're a police officer. ... Wherever you work, everybody struggles, but how can we do that well?"
