By Rae Burgess, LPC, LCMHC, ACS
Mental health counseling is healthcare. Primary medical care is essential for positive health outcomes and longevity. Emotional primary care is equally important.
The people who provide life-saving healthcare and emergency services are vital to the overall functioning and well-being of our community. Unfortunately, the needs of healthcare professionals and first responders are often overlooked. That is why Counseling Connect developed Helping Our Helpers, a program designed to support first responders. We want to give back to the people who devote their careers to public safety and put themselves at risk for others and yet, rarely get the recognition and emotional support they need and deserve.
Counseling Connect is the mental health provider for the Montgomery County Fire-EMS department, NRV 911 Authority, and the Police, Fire, and EMS Departments in the Town of Christiansburg. We work in collaboration to ensure that employees of the department and their immediate family members have rapid access to trauma-informed treatment, mental health and wellness awareness, harm reduction and prevention, and crisis stabilization. Our goal is to integrate mental healthcare into the culture and routine of the local departments, so that they have support when it’s needed. We are the emotional first aid for our first responders.
Our program goes beyond the scope of a traditional Employee Assistance Plan. It’s common to limit the number of sessions allowed, provide services only online or over the phone, and those that are in-person may require taking time off work to attend. In contrast, Counseling Connect has expanded the benefits available to employees and improved the quality, flexibility, and continuity of care.
Our clients have consistency. When entering services, a client may choose to work with any of Counseling Connect’s qualified mental health professionals. They see the same therapist as often as needed. We don’t want people to start over with a new counselor and retell their story repeatedly, which is exhausting and potentially retraumatizing.
There are no costs for clients covered by the contract. Our service contracts are negotiated with employers, so that people who receive therapy have no financial obligation to us. This allows us to maintain a therapeutic relationship entirely focused on treatment. We offer flexible scheduling to accommodate office visits, telehealth, and sessions at the employee’s workplace.
Therapy sessions are confidential. Some EAP providers are obligated to share information with the clients’ employers, but that is not the case with Helping Our Helpers. Unless our clients sign a release of information, then none of their identifying health information will be disclosed to a third party. We strive to protect our clients’ privacy while promoting their autonomy and safety.
The mental health coverage offered through this program is essential. Helping Our Helpers can work as a supplement or replacement for employee-assistance programs that aren’t worth the price to employers and don’t improve the well-being of workers or the general welfare of the workplace.
Counseling Connect continues to expand this program in other local departments. We want to keep everyone working to the best of their abilities.
We appreciate our first responders and admire the contributions they make to our community. They’re here for us through thick and thicker, and they shouldn’t have to help others at their own expense.
So who is helping the helpers? We are.
To make an appointment with a therapist at Counseling Connect, you can call 540-315-1445 or book online at https://counselingconnect.clientsecure.me/. We look forward to connecting with you.