By Anna Parry, AACE Managing Director
“In order to achieve our vision of providing unmatched quality of care, we need to support our committed colleagues and volunteers across the organisation who support the most vulnerable in society every day and often respond to traumatic emergencies.
Sadly, this can come with an emotional cost. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2011-15 study of suicide by occupation found that male paramedics are 75% more likely to take their own life than the national average. This statistic is both shocking and worrying, and as a sector we are taking steps to prevent suicide among our workforce.
This work will not only support people who may be feeling suicidal, but also support the mental health and wellbeing of all of our colleagues.
People are often scared to say if they’ve been having suicidal thoughts, and the fear of speaking openly increases isolation which can, in turn, increase the chance of suicide.
Suicidal thoughts can last and be an ongoing daily occurrence. It’s difficult to measure how many people may be having suicidal thoughts.
We need to encourage opportunities for conversation around the subject in a kind, calm and non-judgemental way.
Life can be hard and working in emergency services can be hard. By acknowledging this and normalising the conversation around suicide or suicidal thoughts, we can have a better understanding of it before we reach crisis. I hope this toolkit will provide guidance in the event of a death by suicide of one of our own and help people find hope in difficult times.
We would like to thank our colleagues at the North East Ambulance Service for developing and sharing these materials with the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives for dissemination and use across all statutory ambulance services across the UK.
I hope this toolkit will become an essential resource in managing the wellbeing of our colleagues, supporting and educating everyone in the sector.”
View or download the resources here:
AACE Mental Maintenance: Suicide Prevention and Postvention Toolkit
We are committed to supporting our colleagues. One in four emergency service workers have thought about ending their own lives (MIND, 2016).
The more we understand about suicide, the more we may be able to reduce the risk in our workplace.
This toolkit is designed to help, support and educate around the risks of suicide within the workplace.
It will look to promote good practice and encourage conversation to help remove the stigma around mental health and suicide.
AACE Mental Maintenance: Personalised Toolkit
The Mental Maintenance Personalised Toolkit is inspired by Mary Ellen Copeland’s Wellness Recovery Action Plan® (WRAP®), an evidence-based system used worldwide by people to manage their mental health.
The toolkit reminds us to live with intentionality when it comes to managing our mental health, helping us to create our own unique toolkit of approaches.
Your toolkit is confidential and is only shared or read by others with your permission.
AACE Mental Maintenance: Guidance for Managers
We all play a part in helping to create a shift in how we approach mental wellbeing across the organisation.
The Mental Maintenance approach aims to help create a shift to viewing mental health as something that needs to be maintained rather than only attended to in a crisis.
As managers and team leaders, we are looking to inspire our colleagues to take ownership of their own mental health maintenance and recovery.
This will be done through education, personalised plans and peer support.
AACE Mental Maintenance: Employee and Volunteer Toolkit
The goal of mental maintenance is to support colleagues to regain and sustain a sense of mental wellbeing. It aims to create an action driven, positive and proactive relationship with our mental health.
Working in emergency services can take its toll. We want to inspire colleagues to take ownership of their mental wellbeing through education, peer support and personalised plans.
This toolkit is designed to educate on mental health issues that many of us can experience and empower colleagues to be able to recognise and manage any feelings they may be having. It includes information on different mental health conditions.
You can also access additional mental health and wellbeing resources on this page, and via our resources archive here.
