(Beaver Dam) The Beaver Dam Police Department not only stresses the importance of mental health resources, but also mental health education. Officer Joeseph Salazar says that during his recent academy training, there was an emphasis on mental health.
“There was an extended amount of time dedicated in the academy to understanding crisis, understanding what they call the crisis cycle,” says Salazar. “You know, the buildup and the come down, and how to appropriately try your best to deescalate and diffuse and understand what’s going on there.”
Salazar says the stigma around mental health in the field of emergency response used to be (quote) “You can’t need help. You’re not supposed to need help.” He adds that the best thing people can do is educate themselves.
“I think the biggest thing that can prevent anything from getting ten times worse is being able to recognize certain signs,” Salazar says. “You know whether that’s the crisis state of a crisis circle or just kind of like those red flags of when things are starting to kind of get to a head.”
Salazar says that self-education, as well as potentially taking a class is important in furthering the dialogue around mental health.
