Law enforcement checks in on their mental state - WAFB

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Day in and day out, local law enforcers put themselves in harm’s way to protect their community, which often means their mental and emotional state is on the line too.

Jonathan Medine, a special victims’ unit detective with the Baton Rouge Police Department, has been law enforcement for 16 years.

“We just want to help people and do the best we can, and sometimes we’ll never understand the why, and I think that’s okay,” explained Medine.

Medine says he has seen tragedy and trauma up close. He was on the scene when officers found the bodies of a missing pregnant woman and her toddler.

“It was a very solemn situation, anytime that you are searching for a deceased person, it’s difficult to wrap your head around. Like I said earlier, I don’t believe the human mind was designed to experience like that type of situation,” added Medine.

Medine says when officers respond to calls of a dead person or person, it’s important for them to check in with other officers afterward. It’s why BRPD created an Officer Wellness Program.

“We do a lot of internal work, we have 44 trained peers, that when something happens they reach out by phone or in-person just to check on the officer that was involved to make sure that they are okay,” said Medline.

Besides the internal one-on-one sessions, BRPD offers debriefing sessions where officers talk to their colleagues who were alongside them on scene.

“We continuously stay in contact with them, and if we feel like they need a higher level of care, we’ll refer them to different services. We have multiple services that we use, and just refer out if it gets to that point,” said Medline.

It’s a form of communication Medine says officers always need to have, not just on the job, but even once they go home.

“If you are not taking care of yourself and you aren’t healthy, it’s very difficult to help other people who are in need. So, we want to make sure our officers are constantly in a healthy state, so they can be the best police officers that they can be,” said Medine.

If you are struggling with mental illness or need help healing from trauma you’ve witnessed, you might need professional help. You can contact Family Services of Greater Baton Rouge at 225-927-9810 or Volunteers of America Baton Rouge at 225-925-2372.

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source: https://www.wafb.com/2022/03/23/law-enforcement-checks-their-mental-state/

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