Resiliency checklist: 6 ingredients for first responders

Better EMS Performance

How does your resilience measure up?

"Suicide is always preventable. If you are having thoughts of suicide or feeling suicidal, please call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline immediately at 988. Counselors are also available to chat at www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org. Remember: You deserve to be supported, and it is never too late to seek help. Speak with someone today."

By Mike Taigman, Kevin Hammond and Jurie Rossouw

Resilience is the ability to advance in life despite adversity. It's not just bouncing back from bad situations. It's about thriving and living your best life through anything. Resilience is the essence of mental and physical health. Research shows that many factors work together to make us resilient. These are six categories that cover the essential ingredients to assess your resilience. Answer these questions for yourself, and at the end of this article, download a printable checklist to assess resilience.

Composure is about emotional regulation, patience and dealing with adverse situations.

If you feel sad, moody or anxious; have emotional outbursts; or are unable to cope, it might be time to get help.

Collaboration is about relationships, support networks and working in teams.

If you feel lonely or abandoned, have high social anxiety and are unable to relate to others, it might be time to get help.

Vision is about goals, goal orientation, values and a sense of self-worth.

Please get help immediately if you feel hopeless; like you’re in everyone's way. If you feel like you "don't want to do this anymore" or like "everything would be better if you were not around," please reach out for help right now.

Reasoning is about problem-solving, resourcefulness and being ready for change.

If you cannot cope with personal challenges or deal with difficult situations, or have thought distortions that cause problems with your ability to function, seek help.

Health is about exercise, sleep, nutrition and brain health.

If you’re unhealthy, not sleeping, overusing alcohol or drugs, or not caring for chronic diseases, it's time to get help and see your physician.

Tenacity is about the ability to persevere and get back on track.

If you feel pessimistic, hopeless, or perfectionistic to the point of paralysis, you should reach out for some support.

Like physical fitness, resilience is not something you achieve and you’ve got it forever. It's something that requires regular attention for the rest of our lives. Resilience is the key to a sustainable career in the crazy world of emergency services. Evidence shows it protects against anxiety, depression, PTSD, suicide, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and more.

If you need help and don't know where to go, the All Clear Foundation website is a good place to start.

Emergency self-care for the care providers

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Kevin P. Hammond is managing director at Agilon, LLC, and a professionally certified trainer in Situations Leadership, Resilience First Aid (RFA) and High Adversity Resilience Training serving EMS, public education and non-profits. He offers neuroscience-based resilience training that measures and builds resilience in first responders to mitigate stress and other preventable mental health challenges.

In partnership with Hello Driven, Agilon's goal is to expand RFA certification training nationally to peer support teams within public safety agencies engaging in large-scale mental health prevention training deployments. Resilient First Aid teaches strength-based skills to build resilience in others and learn the language to talk proactively, and skills that build resilience.

Jurie Rossouw. is a resilience expert and founder of Driven, a research and technology organization focused on building human resilience. He has developed various innovative and accredited resilience programs, including Resilience First Aid, the AI-powered Driven Resilience program, and High Adversity Resilience Training. These programs are used by various universities, defense, government organizations and therapists worldwide. Jurie has published books such as "Executive Resilience"; reports such as the National Resilience Index; and multiple research papers on the neuroscience of resilience, resilience assessment and new analytics frameworks to better understand resilience's deeper functioning and value.

Fill out the form below to download a printable resiliency checklist to share with your colleagues .

RESILIENCY CHECKLIST

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Mike Taigman uses more than four decades of experience to help EMS leaders and field personnel improve the care/service they provide to patients and their communities. Mike is the Improvement Guide for FirstWatch, a company which provides near-real time monitoring and analysis of data along with performance improvement coaching for EMS agencies.

He teaches Improvement Science in the Master's in Healthcare Administration and Interprofessional Leadership at the University of California San Francisco and the Emergency Health Services Management Graduate Program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. He's the author of "Super-Charge Your Stress Management in the Age of COVID-19." Contact him at [email protected].