This new course could mean better care for traumatized veterans, first responders

Teresa Riversosays she remembers when it was commonplace for mental health professionalsto dismiss andminimize the experiences of patientsexperiencing trauma.

That's why the occupational therapist eagerly signed up when she found out about a new courseon how to provide better careto traumatizedfront-line personnel like military veterans, firefighters and paramedics who are at higher riskthan the general population ofdeveloping post-traumatic stress disorderand other mental illnesses.

"We have to work with them at their level ... They know what they experienced, and I'm not there to tell them, 'Well, you shouldn't feel that way,"said Riverso, who's based in Richmond Hill, Ont., and has been working in her field for 40 years.

"No, that's not going to work any longer, because we really do have to empower themand work at their pace."

Riverso is one of more than350 peoplewho signed up for the new national course, titledIntroduction to Trauma-Exposed Professionalswithin days of its launchon May 26. It's the workofeducational non-profit Wounded Warriors Canada and the Atlas Institute for Veterans and Families.

Scott Maxwell, executive director for Wounded Warriors,says the new course can help health-care workersprovide more effective care to people who, for a long time, weren't fully understood by the health professionals.

He says this is particularly important after two years of thepandemic; because itmadeworking conditions and health concerns worse for many front-line workers. But italso eased the stigmaaround mental illness and allowed more people to speak up, Maxwell says.

"We knew there was a need. We've heard requests for this kind of thing for a long time," said Maxwell.

"But my goodness, the instantaneous response in the last three, three, four days has been just positively overwhelming."

The organization says the first 500 health professionals in Canada working withmilitaryveterans, former RCMPofficersor their families to sign up for the course will receive it free. Wounded Warriors' website states the cost of the course is $200, but through further inquiry could be free for other health-care providers and organizations supporting veterans.

What professionals are learning

Dr. Tim Black, an associate professor of counselling psychology at the University of Victoria and a clinical adviser for Wounded Warriors, developed the online course drawing fromtwo decades of helping veterans and first responders.

The course provides 21 lessons forhealth-care providers building on the knowledge they already have and shifting their perspectives on current care. Topics include howworkplace culture can discourageworkers from speaking about their mental health problems,how to teach patients toregulate their own emotions,andhow to infuse structure and predictability in each patient's plan.

Black says the goal is to help health-care providers boil down what's working and what isn't for their patients, and ultimately ensure patients feel comfortable enough to seek treatment long-term.

"My hope would be that that means people who are dealing with these kinds of things actually will feel a little bit more familiar, maybe a little bit relaxed in the environments that we create," Black said.

"So they'll stay longer and get the help that they need, instead of maybe bumping up against some of the stuff we would typically do."

Riverso hopes this course leads to more that are longer, interactive and incorporate things like case studies. But for now, she says she'll incorporate the course teachings into her work, helping her clientsfind some more control over their emotions, thoughts, and reactions to their traumatic experiences.

"We have to allow them tokind of lead the way."