“We are meeting people in the midst of crisis every single day, whether we realize it or not. The need is there, just because they are employed with us doesn’t mean they don’t have needs to be met, and sometimes that is simply giving them a resource or tool when they need it.”

The perspective of Charlsie Edmonson, an Opportunity and Accessibility Administrator at the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, among others, is part of a new video series of wellness resources from Axon Aid to support the mental health of professionals in the corrections field.

Addressing mental wellbeing concerns can be a difficult process in the corrections field, where stigma around mental health still exists. Left unchecked, this stress can lead to burnout, turnover, and in extreme cases, even suicide. In fact, a 2018 study by UC Berkeley revealed that more than 7 in 10 participating corrections officers haven’t told anyone about suicidal thoughts they’ve experienced as a result of their work.

This month, 11 new video resources were added to Axon Aid’s video wellness library in collaboration with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (ODRC) Employee Services team — also known as their “wellness unit”. The video resources provide strategic guidance on how institutions can support the mental health of their staff through policy-driven programming. The learnings shared from the ODRC leaders share a path towards creating a culture that prioritizes the wellbeing of staff.

First responders experienced COVID-19 differently than many, but corrections professionals faced some of the most difficult conditions. The effects of the pandemic are still not fully understood, but ODRC is a shining example of how unique challenges give the opportunity to experiment with staff programming. “Wellness Wednesday Webinars” was one of the pilot initiatives ODRC trialed in 2020. The optional monthly one-hour webinar started as a small way to bring people together during a time of distancing, but it blossomed as a necessary avenue of support within the ODRC community. Now in its fourth year, 300-400 attendees tune in live weekly. The impact goes further than the monthly hour of virtual wellness conversations, as those who tune in to the discussions bring their learnings to those who couldn’t make it – carrying the torch of mental health conversations into common workplace discussions, something unthinkable 20 years ago.

Available at no cost, the new videos with Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction are a valuable addition to Axon Aid’s corrections wellness video resources, first introduced last year to support corrections officers across three phases:

• Personal experiences of witnessing and dealing with mental health issues in the profession

• Building a wellness department in a profession that can struggle with addressing mental health and how to break down the stigma at your agency

• Resiliency techniques from veterans in the correctional field and experts on resiliency techniques designed to address correctional officers’ needs and help achieve a state of calm before, during and after a shift

“Everyone in this field has experienced some type of traumatic experience,” said Sandi Hoppough, Corrections Officer, Arizona Department of Corrections, Corrections Admin Supporting Officer Mental Health Training.

“When two people share those elements, one of the things that happens is that they know that they are not alone,” continued Hoppough. “If they see the other person having a story of coming out of an incident that really impacted them — threw them into depression or made them angry — they see that person as human and that will reflect on them as well. When you share those types of situations it becomes part of the job, but also shows the individual that they can reach out and talk to somebody — and know that they will listen.”

Learn more and access Axon Aid’s resources for first responders. If you or someone you love is experiencing suicidal thoughts or actions or is in active crisis call 988 for 24/7 crisis support.