Peer led; Clinician assisted.
NYLEAP (New York Law Enforcement Assistance Program) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Our services are offered at no charge to individuals who serve as first responders and their families (i.e., law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical services personnel, correction officers, dispatchers and members of the military).
The mission of NYLEAP is to improve the mental health and overall wellness of all law enforcement officers and first responders (both active and retired). We also aim to reduce the rates of divorce, alcohol abuse, PTSD, cumulative stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and suicide which disproportionately impact law enforcement officers and other first responders. NYLEAP assists individuals, couples and agencies recognize the signs and symptoms of stress and trauma and to get the help they need. Evidence-based techniques and services are provided through education and training to help first responders live healthier and happier lives and be more productive and effective at work. Healthy officers and responders are better equipped to improve relationships with the communities they serve which in-turn helps to create cost savings for departments.
NYLEAP was created by peers, for peers, to help fight the stigma associated with first responders asking for and receiving help by having open conversations about mental health and the impact of trauma. The statistics are continuing to grow at alarming rates in terms of number of deaths by suicide; along with the frequency of PTSD, cumulative trauma, alcohol/substance use disorders, and other mental health concerns that may be caused by the day-to-day stress and trauma from the job. In 2022, the number of reported deaths by suicide in law enforcement outnumbered felonious line of duty deaths by near triple rates.
Our goal is to equip officers and first responders with the tools needed in order to provide individual and group peer support within their own agencies and with other responders throughout the state. Having trained peers in each agency will make the utilization of peers more commonplace, ultimately helping to smash the stigma attached to seeking help. NYLEAP provides training through the International Critical Incident Foundation’s (ICISF) and offers Group Crisis Intervention, Assisting Individuals in Crisis and other courses. NYLEAP also provides annual training and in-services for current peers and departments.
We provide proven and effective, peer-based and clinician assisted Post Critical Incident Seminars (PCIS) in conjunction with other LEAP programs (SC, NC, VA, WV, OH, OK, OR, AR, TX, GA, CA) throughout the country. The PCIS provides education on trauma, patterns of resolution, and field-tested, evidence -based coping strategies to promote recovery and resilience. Peer support is a critical element of the PCIS, helping to promote normalization and recovery. This format originated with the FBI in 1985, and is now used by other LEAP programs across the Country. SCLEAP (South Carolina Law Enforcement Assistance Program) has been successfully hosting PCIS’ since 2000. All first responders who have been involved in a critical incident(s) or exposed to trauma during their career are provided the opportunity to attend the PCIS at no cost to themselves. The experiential seminar creates a safe and confidential environment for the first responders to discuss their trauma, process and begin the healing process in a healthy atmosphere with peers and clinicians.
NYLEAP is also available to help facilitate Critical Incident Stress Debriefings (CISD) and provide other Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) services to individuals, couples and agencies.
A peer support team is a vital part of helping our law enforcement officers and first responders deal with the daily stress and individual and group crisis that may be experienced throughout a career. We live in a society where unfmental health concerns are attached to stigma. These stigmas are even more prevalent in the first responder community. We have a duty and obligation to break that stigma and to provide much needed resources to those who dedicate their lives to helping others. By providing the PCIS, crisis intervention, debriefings and training to all the first responders in New York, our goal is to restore hope and healing.
#breakthestigma #oneistoomany