ENTERPRISE, Ala. (WTVY) – The Wiregrass Military Veteran and First Responder Coalition held a suicide prevention summit in Enterprise, bringing together service providers and resources to address suicide risk among veterans and first responders.
Studies show veterans are 58% more likely to die by suicide than their non-veteran peers. First responders are also considered an at-risk group.
Jason Smith of the Florida Springs Wellness and Recovery Center said the two communities face similar obstacles when it comes to mental health.
“I think when you look at first responders, military, and veterans, there are a lot of similarities in those groups,” Smith said. “We don’t like to talk about our problems. We’re worried about what might happen because it might take us out of deploying. It might take us out of the unit. It might take us away, off the street. So the concerns that we all have together…that’s why we put all those communities and those families together because we understand running into the fire and sacrifice.”
One focus of the summit was the link between traumatic brain injuries and suicide risk among veterans. The Alabama Department of Rehabilitation Services will soon open five traumatic brain injury clinics, including one in Enterprise, placing services in veteran-heavy communities.
Angela Ogleclark, ADRS state field supervisor for the traumatic brain injury program, said the connection between TBI, substance use, and suicide is a critical concern.
“The link is the traumatic brain injury — if they have obtained it in combat or something of that nature, that direct link can lead to substance use,” Oglclark said. “Substance use increases the rate to suicide by 68%. So it’s really critical to get those screenings in place for our centers, our medical providers, our mental health providers, for them to be helping people to get access to these screeners so that they can put that information out there. Because that is a different type of injury than just a mental illness.”
The Wiregrass Military Veteran and First Responder Coalition is composed of service providers focused on mental health and wellness for veterans, first responders, and their families.
Co-chair Davon Sachey, a Marine Corps veteran, said the coalition’s diverse backgrounds strengthen its ability to serve the community.
“I think it’s really important that we all come from varying backgrounds,” Sachey said. “I’m a Marine Corps veteran, Jason’s a Marine Corps veteran, and Chelsea doesn’t have a military or first responder affiliation, but she has the mental health side of everything. So I think together we can build a more robust and fully encompassing program that can help serve everybody from every angle.”
Co-chair Chelsea Dankert said the coalition’s goal is to expand trauma-informed outreach.
“Everything ties into and influences another piece concerning mental health,” Dankert said. “The platform that we’re building is we want to be more informed. We want to be more trauma-informed as a whole, so we can help individuals. But then more importantly, we want to equip and train others so that that outreach and impact is magnified.”
Smith said the summit’s broader purpose is to open the door to difficult conversations.
“Getting the information out there, making the community aware that they can have these hard conversations with their friends and family, is going to help save lives,” Smith said.
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