DEC 2022. Blues Vol 38 No. 12

We’ve all heard the saying, “What
happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”
… and the same goes for check-ins.
Nothing that is said during a checkin
or subsequent therapy session is
reported back to the employer. No
diagnosis is made, and because the
practice bills the agency directly
(and “in bulk”) there is no record of
the check-in or therapy sessions on
the employee’s medical or insurance
history.
With mandatory check-ins, your
agency will see your name on an
invoice to indicate that you attended.
That’s it. If you opt for further
therapy sessions (which are included
in the program contract), your
employer will eventually know
that somebody in the department
received treatment, but they won’t
know who or what issues were
addressed.
The sole exceptions to this confidentiality
rule are situations where
the person attending the session
is likely to cause immediate harm
to themselves or others, or if the
person discloses abuse of a child or
vulnerable adult. Those notifications
are mandated by law and ethical
codes and are made to the appropriate
law enforcement entity – not
necessarily the employer.
WHO NEEDS A CHECK-IN?
Some might assume that only
sworn law enforcement officers
need to get check-ins, but we
advocate for a different approach.
Non-sworn employees of law
enforcement agencies share in
the stress and trauma their sworn
colleagues’ experience. Dispatchers,
crime scene technicians and even
administrative workers also feel the
impact. Because of this, we recommend
that all employees – from the
chief on down – commit to annual
check-ins. However, it is common
that only sworn personnel are required
to do a check in while it is a
voluntary benefit for other LE staff.
FEELING THE BENEFITS: THE
BURNSVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT
Sergeant Dave Zerwas of the
Burnsville (Minn.) Police Department
knows firsthand how helpful
the check-in/therapy program has
been at his agency. “We started
our program four or five years ago
with Marie Ridgeway’s practice,” he
says. “I’ve used her myself, and it’s
benefited me personally. I know the
program is being utilized because I
pay the bills when they come.”
According to Zerwas, the BPD
wanted to be more proactive regarding
mental wellness. “We’re
investing in the front end to prevent
either losing people or having
them spiral and have some type of
incident on the job, which is a very
real danger,” he says. “If somebody’s
not hitting on all cylinders, they’re
more likely to have a use-of-force
complaint, make a bad decision
on the street, or have an accident
because maybe they’re not sleeping
or focused.”
Sgt. Zerwas says keeping his
employees in the best physical and
mental shape helps prevent losing
them to medical retirement or termination.
It also reduces the risk of
officers creating problems for both
the agency and themselves.
“Several of my closest friends
have, over the last several years,
been involved in officer-involved
shootings,” Sgt. Zerwas says. “These
are all great cops, all of whom I
admire. When they had their shootings,
they openly admitted to me
they were struggling. When you
don’t get help after something so
traumatic, you suffer and your family
suffers. But by dealing with those
strong emotions, they were able to
get their lives and families back in
order and feel whole again.”
FEELING THE BENEFITS: CROW
WING COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE
Meliene Fontaine-Laska is the human
resources director for the Crow
Wing County Sheriff’s Office, headquartered
in Brainerd, Minn. Before
adding the check-ins and therapy
sessions as an official program, the
agency already had a peer support
structure in place. Still, the leadership
believed more could and
should be done.
“When we first developed our
program here, we took a long, hard
look at why we felt we needed
this,” Fontaine-Laska says. “We had
a few leaders on our team who had
incredible passion for officer wellness.
Part of the reason is that they
themselves had some baggage that
they’d been carrying around for 25
to 30 years – images they couldn’t
get out of their minds. So, we contacted
Marie and said, ‘How do we
do this?’”
The main focus, according to
Fontaine-Laska, was on the quality
of life for all employees: “Who do
you really have to talk with to filter
those things out of your work life
and still have an enjoyable home
life?”
Fontaine-Laska likened on-thejob
trauma to a cup that each
person carries around, which
eventually fills up to the point of
overflowing. “And if you can’t empty
that cup,” she says, “it becomes too
overwhelming and you’re just numb
to what’s going on out there. And
then something else happens and
you become very ineffective as an
officer.”
With check-ins and follow-up
therapy sessions, she adds, the
trauma is still there. It’s just more
manageable.
“Every day in county government,
we put people in harm’s way,” Fontaine-Laska
says. “This program is
our way of making sure our officers
deal with the ongoing, day-to-day
trauma that builds up over time,
so at the end of the day or the end
of the week they can go home and
have a satisfying life.”
SUMMING IT UP
In many ways, we as a nation
have normalized indifference to
mental health. Fortunately, this is
changing. While the old “ignore it
and it will go away” attitudes still
Amid stressful year, St. Paul Police mandates annual officer check-ins with therapist
persist in some places, many public
safety departments are recognizing
the importance of proactive mental
wellness to keep their employees
healthy and happy (and on the job).
For public safety, a specialized approach
with specialized clinicians
who are culturally competent is key.
We’ve found that an “all of the
above” approach is best. Employee
assistance programs can be great.
Peer support structures can be
invaluable. Innovative technologies
can deliver anonymous help 24/7.
And mental wellness check-ins are
the perfect tool to provide mental
health maintenance and encourage
public safety employees to seek
therapy when they need it.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Marie Ridgeway MSW, LICSW, RYT
is a Master’s-level mental health
clinician with a specialty in treating
stress injuries (PTS) and the
secondary challenges that commonly
occur (anxiety, depression,
panic attacks, substance abuse,
relationship challenges). Marie has
advanced training in Accelerated
Resolution Therapy (ART). She and
her staff of occupationally competent
clinicians currently work with
over 40 public safety agencies in
Minnesota. Marie has worked in the
field for over 16 years. She completed
her master’s degree in 2010 and has
been providing clinical supervision
for the Minnesota Board of Social
Work since 2018. She was a training
specialist for the Minnesota Chiefs
of Police Association, at numerous
annual first responder conferences,
and has worked individually with
thousands of law enforcement
officers across the state since 2017.
Marie brings knowledge and skills
from her diverse work experience
that includes child protection and
psychiatric crisis team response.
Marie is honored to be providing
specialized occupationally competent
care, wellness programming,
POST training, and Crisis Negotiation
Team clinical consultation to those
in public safety who serve our communities.
To learn more, please visit
www.marieridgeway.com or email
information@marieridgeway.com.
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48 The BLUES The BLUES 49