OPS Wellness
Wellness has expanded and is here to support all members. However, no one’s path to wellness and better health—mentally and physically—fits into a single pillar and not all needs are the same.
We work collaboratively with each other to ensure you have the best resources and supports available to you. If you have any questions about this, please do not hesitate to ask us.
| Sgt. Nelson Rowan | Peer Support Coordinator | wellness@ottawapolice.ca |
| Sgt. | Resiliency Coordinator | wellness@ottawapolice.ca |
| Sgt. Than Tran | Wellness Reintegration Coordinator | wellness@ottawapolice.ca |
| Sarah McEwen | Wellness Resource Liaison | wellness@ottawapolice.ca |
| Christine Callaghan | Wellness Analyst | earlyintervention@ottawapolice.ca |
| Angela Slobodian | Director of Health, Safety and Wellness | wellness@ottawapolice.ca |
We are available, not only to members, retirees and family, but also to supervisors to assist in helping them support their own teams. We work closely with the Abilities Management section (formerly known as Health and Safety) who can be reached at abilitiesmanagement@ottawapolice.ca for any questions regarding absences, accommodations, WSIB and LTD.
What we can offer…
- Critical incident debriefs
- Resources to clinicians and professional services
- Assistance with Return to Work
- Peer Support
- Support and Reintegration program for members after a critical incident or returning to work
- Creating and implementing programming for members through lunch and learns or virtual town halls
What is Wellness?
“Wellness” represents a whole-person, balanced approach to being in good mental and physical health. It includes occupational, emotional, social, spiritual, intellectual, mental, physical, and familial wellness – all of which impact each other. Achieving a “well” state is not only life-affirming, but it allows people to reach their full potential.
Why Wellness?
Policing is a unique profession. It is both physically and mentally demanding, highly visible, unpredictable, and requires a great deal of resilience. Given our mandate in policing and the evidence supporting the First Responders First Act, we understand that our work realities expose us to critical incident stress. This exposure may, potentially, have significant impact on the well-being of our members.
As First Responders, if wellness is not properly managed, the challenging job of policing can lead to health issues that can affect an employee’s overall well-being, impacting not only the individual employee but also the workplace, their families and the community.
Support and Reintegration Program
In December 2021, the OPS Wellness unit hosted Edmonton Police Service (EPS) to be trained on their Reintegration Program. We had 19 OPS members trained in Reintegration as well as members from other services. EPS started their Reintegration Program 12 years ago and have been training agencies across the world. We are in the process of creating a video to provide more information about the OPS Support and Reintegration Program but the attached article has information and a video about the EPS Reintegration Program.
This new program is designed to assist members with a healthy and safe return to work utilizing Exposure Therapy in collaboration with the participant’s clinician. This is an individualistic program developed with the members input to aid in the elimination of any identified triggers. The exposures can include entering a police building, exposure to lights, sirens, uniform, taser, gun, police radio or any other situation that may be mutually agreed to be beneficial.
The goal is to assist officers who have been off work for any period of time to return to the normalcy of work settings by providing supports and training that are outside the scope of what they have received from their health care provider (ie. psychologist, clinician or OT). The sessions are at the member’s pace and are individually tailored to their needs to support a safe and successful return to work.
The short-term program will be utilized following a shooting or other critical incident. The primary goal is to get the officer back to work shortly after a critical incident while diminishing the potential for long-term psychological injury.
For further information regarding the OPS Support and Reintegration Program, please send an email to wellness@ottawapolice.ca.
Wellness Resource Liaison
The Wellness Resource Liaison works closely with the WSIB Coordinators and the Abilities Management Specialists to assist members with return to work by providing ‘system navigator’ supports. The Resource Liaison can also assist the member with completing paperwork (WSIB, LTD, etc.) and any general enquiries regarding the process. The goal is to ensure the member feels supported during pivotal times, maintains a connection to the organization and is supported during their absence and upon return to work. They also provide information about internal/external supports and resources to assist members with workplace and personal stressors.
Early Intervention
The purpose of the Ottawa Police Early Intervention program (EIP) is to identify members who may be in need of support and provide resources to assist the member at the earliest stages of an issue. EIP is a confidential process to identify members using specific criteria and offer assistance. The EIP is only one of the methods available by which members are identified as possibly needing assistance. It is intended to serve as a data driven systematic approach to highlighting members that might need assistance that might otherwise have been missed.
EIP allows the OPS to identify members who may need assistance as a result of work-related and/or personal stressors in a timely, supportive and non-disciplinary manner. The program is confidential, voluntary, proactive, and non-disciplinary. The intent of the program is to provide support to members through their supervisors.
Peer Support Program
Peer support is connecting with another person who has lived experience of their own and can relate to what you are going through–this could be a divorce, a sick child, a difficult call, the list goes on. It is completely confidential.
Our current 37 Peer Supporters are made up of sworn officers, civilians, retirees and family members. Members on the team all have biographies on the OPS intranet and can be contacted at any time. Assistance can be sought through the Peer Support Coordinator to find a Peer Supporter or to be matched with a Peer Supporter outside of OPS (ex. Paramedic, Fire or someone from another police service).