Story and Mission
The Counseling Center of Texas established The First Responder Behavioral Health Institute (FRBHI) and the Foundation (FRBHF) a 501c3 organization which grew out of our unyielding concern for our first responders’ psychological health and wellbeing in 2022. What started with emergency on scene crisis responses and critical incident stress debriefings for first responder agencies quickly grew to become education and training programs for local fire departments, police departments, health care organizations, public schools, and the private sector.
Mission Statement
It is the mission of The First Responder Behavioral Health Institute to develop a common platform worldwide to facilitate open dialog, discussion, research, and education into behavioral health from the first responder perspective. We have developed a comprehensive program leading to certification as a Behavioral Health First Responder.
We provide continuing education for all first responders ensuring they have access to customized and highly tailored education and training programs in first responder behavioral health leading to certification as Behavioral Health First Responders. Our team is helping to:
- Develop policies and procedures for treating mental health injuries.
- Develop workplace standards that support employee health and wellbeing.
- Develop return to work policies in collaboration with agencies and governments.
- Develop equitable and fair standards for mental health leave policies.
- Improve and research new standards that provide better first responder workplaces.
- Develop legislation advocating for meaningful standards of care for first responders.
- Research and help develop psychologically healthy public safety work environments.
- Serve as a resource for change agents and behavioral health advocates worldwide.
- Provide a common platform for first responders to give voice to the need for change.
- Support presumptive legislation for first responder mental health injuries.
- Collaborate with university research teams at institutions worldwide on research into first responder behavioral health to improve the workplace and reverse the epidemic of first responder suicide.
- Develop courses collaboratively with experts in the field and provide the highest quality education to our students, members and be a constant source of support to our alumni.
We recognize that we are not the perfect solution for every agency. We understand that some agencies will take the shortest route possible and the easiest certification program that comes along that will meet bare minimum compliance needs. We aim to be the most comprehensive, highest quality and the very best educational resource for our first responder community. We are never willing to sacrifice quality over quantity or bow to political expediency. We are here to offer a high-quality solution that provides the very best education to first responders and aims to fill the need that has been created by a health care system in crisis.