Beginning today, Monday, September 25, first responders across the province will be able to call a peer-support helpline to discuss mental health challenges.

The Boots on the Ground (BOTG), Alberta Chapter was spear-headed by first responder and Airdrie resident, Mo Shaukat. Shaukat, a corrections officer and military reserve member is the President of BOTG in Alberta and will be answering calls on the helpline for first responders.

The Ontario-based organization, which Shaukat approached a little over a year ago, asking if he could lead the charge to expand services into Alberta, has been offering confidential, anonymous peer-to-peer support through a 24/7 helpline to first responders for the past five years. 

Shaukat underlined that the peer-support service offers first responders the ability to discuss mental health challenges with someone who may have also experienced something similar in their career. 

"The staff [providing peer support] have to be service members. One of the questions we ask [the members] is if they have experienced any trauma [in their] personal life or professional life. They have lived experience of struggles," he said. "Our experiences might not be exactly the same as the callers', but it is similar. We know the stress of the job."

Shaukat underlined that while the peer support service is not meant to be a substitute for professional mental health help or intervention, but instead a confidential way for first responders to be able to talk through their trauma to someone who understands the nuances of their jobs. He has been working for the past year to set up the Alberta office of BOTG which included recruiting and training a team of volunteers who will now offer support for first responders in the province.  

Gary Carty is one of those volunteers. A retired police who worked for over four decades in Ontario, Carty now lives in Alberta.

“It gives you the ability to talk in very frank terms about what you’ve seen with non-judgemental people on the other side of the phone that have gone through similar life experiences,” Carty stated. “We’re trained to deal with emergencies our whole career. So, if someone presents you with an emergent situation, we have protocols to get them the help they need.” 

Given that in the past several months, first responders, especially police in Alberta, have experienced what many say is an unprecedented number of in-the-line-of-duty deaths, Shaukat believes that the service BOTG offers is needed now more than ever.

Having attended the funerals of two Edmonton police officers who were killed in the line of duty, several months ago, Shaukat himself is reflecting on the emotional toll the job takes.

"You start equating it to your own scenario. I'm just speaking for myself, [but] have a young family and if I were taken away, the first thoughts that come to your head are who's going to take care of my kids? Who's going to take care of my family?" he said. "Yes - we sign up for these jobs and we know the risks involved. But, nobody signs up, expecting the worst. Once it happens, that's something that weighs very heavily on you."

Shaukat believes that if the BOTG Alberta Chapter had been up and running a few months prior, there would have been numerous calls.

Founder and President Dave McLennan of BOTG, a former police officer, said the organization has always known there is a need around the country for first responders to receive this kind of mental health support from their peers. 

“We already receive calls from across North America. So, it’s a natural progression for us and exciting to get going in another province. This is the first step for us to operate all across the country."

A 2016 study by the Journal of Community Safety and Well-Being estimated that 70,000 Canadian non-federal police, firefighters and EMS personnel have suffered from PTSD.  

Since 2018, BOTG has received 2400 calls. This includes 40 active suicide callers it was able to direct to counsellors who could provide appropriate assistance.  In June 2023, BOTG had its second busiest month in its history fielding 79 calls. 

Boots On The Ground in Alberta's toll-free number is 1-866-724-BOTG (2684). The free, confidential service is available to firefighters, military members, both provincial and federal correction officers, police, sheriffs, peace officers, paramedics, nurses, and emergency dispatch operators. 

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