Meet Our Speakers
Chief John A. Donnelly, Sr.
DC Fire and EMS Chief John A. Donnelly, Sr. was nominated by Mayor Muriel Bowser on September 4, 2020 to serve as the next Fire and Emergency Medical Services Chief and to lead the 2,100 member DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department. He was confirmed by the Council of the District of Columbia on December 15, 2020.
Chief Donnelly started his career with DC Fire and EMS in 1992 at Truck 16. Over the course of his career he has served at Rescue Squad 3, Tower 3, Battalion Fire Chief 2; as the Division Commander of Special Operations, Homeland Security, and Apparatus Division; and as a member of the Command Staff in Special Projects and Executive Officer Roles.
In 2018, Chief Donnelly was promoted to the newly established Professional Development Bureau which includes the Human Resources Division which includes the Payroll and Compliance Offices, Professional Standards Division, Training Division, the Medical Services Division, and the Grants Office.
Chief Donnelly serves on numerous committees supporting regional and national preparedness, including the International Association of Fire Chiefs Terrorism and Homeland Security Committee and the Metropolitan Washington Council of Government’s Fire Chief’s Committee.
Chief Donnelly is a long-time Ward 4 resident of the District of Columbia and lives in Manor Park. He spends his free time working with the Boy Scouts of Troop 98 in Brookland.
Dr. Jennifer O’Leary Tait
Keynote Speaker
Jennifer A. O’Leary Tait, PhD, ABPP is a licensed psychologist in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Maine. She is Board Certified in Clinical Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology. Dr. O’Leary Tait is the current Chair of the American Psychological Association’s Division 18 Psychologists in Public Service’s Police and Public Safety Section.
Dr. O’Leary Tate is a psychologist for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in Worcester, Massachusetts, working with many first responder veterans in a clinical role. She also is a volunteer clinician for CopLine, a law enforcement officers’ crisis hotline.
She earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Massachusetts Boston in 2007. She completed her APA-approved internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the Bedford (MA) VA Hospital.
Dr. O’Leary Tait has been in a public safety family her entire life. Her brother is a corrections officer, her husband is a police sergeant, and her father, a retired police officer, died by suicide. She is passionate about promoting and advocating for first responder mental health, wellness, and suicide prevention in veterans, law enforcement, and those in the fire service.
Dr. Nicole L. Sawyer
Then and Now: The rapidly changing landscape of gender norms and the hidden impact on trauma
Nicole L Sawyer, Psy.D is a licensed clinical psychologist in New Hampshire. She has been in clinical practice since 2005 and works exclusively with public safety professionals and first responder agencies.
Dr. Sawyer recently accepted the role of public safety training consultant for NHs Fire/EMS and Police Academies, she has served for more than 12 years as the supporting psychologist for the NH State Police Peer Support Unit, and she provides clinical support for various Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) teams across the state serving both Fire and Police agencies.
In addition to her role as an instructor for the NAMI-NH Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) program for first responders, she is the professional crisis intervention specialist for the Seacoast Emergency Response Team (SERT) and the NH State Police SWAT (NHSP-CNU), responding alongside law enforcement to community crises.
Dr. Sawyer provides psychological consultation, assessment, and evaluation for state and local agencies across NH. She is known best for her straight-talking and candid trainings and workshops; taking a direct approach to the psychological challenges faced by public safety professionals and first responders over the course of their careers, as well as the challenges of crisis intervention in the community.
Dr. Burton A. Clark
Human Factors applied to firefighter traumatic occupational death on the fire ground, needed tools
Burton “Burt” Clark, Ed.D, EFO, has been in the fire service for 48 years and counting! He started his career a firefighter in Washington, DC, and his career path took to Prince George’s County (Mary.), and Carroll County (Mary.),
His other fire service roles have included Assistant Fire Chief in Laurel, Maryland, the Management Science Program Chair and Executive Fire Officer Research Advisor at the National Fire Academy, an Operations Chief during national disasters and emergencies for the DHS/FEMA, an Instructor Trainer for the University of Maryland Fire Rescue Institute.
Dr. Clark is an Expert Technical Reviewer for the CDC National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program, and a visiting scholar at Johns Hopkins University Center for Injury Research and Policy.
He serves on the doctoral research faculty at Oklahoma State, Benedictine, Northern Illinois, Grand Canyon, and Fielding Universities. In addition, he conducts lectures, workshops, and strategic planning for various educational and governmental organizations.
Burt has a BS is in Business Administration from Strayer University, MA in Curriculum & Instruction from Catholic University, and Ed.D. in Adult Education from Nova Southeastern University. He has served on 17 doctoral dissertation committees. He studied fire science at Montgomery College with Professor Frank Brannigan, Emergency Management at the Emergency Management Institute, National Security at the National Defense University, and is a graduate of the National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer Program.
He is a nationally certified Fire Officer Four, Chief Fire Officer Designee for nine years, and Eagle Scout Mentor. Burt writes, lectures, and teaches fire service research, safety, culture, and professional development worldwide.
His first book is titled, I Can’t Save You, And I Don’t Want to Die Trying: The American Fire Culture.
Deputy Chief Shawn Downs
Behavioral Health Program in the DC Fire & EMS Department
Shawn Downs is a 25-year veteran of the fire service, currently serving as the Deputy Fire Chief of Health and Safety in the District of Columbia Fire and EMS Department (DCFEMS), where he is responsible for ensuring the well-being of a 2,200-member fire and EMS organization.
Throughout his career, Downs has undertaken several initiatives to enhance firefighter safety and health. He’s currently working on expanding the DCFEMS behavioral health program, implementing fully compliant NFPA 1582 physicals for DCFEMS members. Downs has implemented a Near-Miss Reporting System, a Violence Against Responder Reporting System, and developed an array of safety programs internally and externally. These projects demonstrate his commitment to creating a safer and more efficient work environment for firefighters.
As a graduate of Columbia Southern University, Downs holds a Bachelor of Science in Fire Administration, and a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in Public Administration. His educational background and a diverse range of fire service accreditations have equipped him with the necessary skills to excel in any leadership position.
Downs currently serves as the Chair of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCOG) Health and Safety Sub-Committee, where he ensures information sharing on firefighter health, safety, and interoperability among 24 agencies in the metro DC region. He also leads a nationwide working group dedicated to addressing the fire service problem associated with the End of Service Time Indicator (ESOTI) on high-pressure breathing apparatus systems, as well as a host of other safety concerns facing the fire service.
Dr. Gina Dunckel
Peer Support and Clinical Support: Fire service working with a clinician and developing mental health programs
Gina Dunckel is a licensed psychologist in the state of Texas, and she is vetted through the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT) to practice telehealth psychology in thirty-eight states. She attended the Illinois School of Professional Psychology in Chicago where she received a master’s degree and Doctorate in Clinical Psychology after completing her internship at Valley Coastal Bend VA.
She has experience treating post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, sleep disorder, pain management, critical incidents, and adjustment to life’s changes (e.g., divorce, job change). In her private practice, she exclusively works with first responders and veterans.
Currently, Dr. Dunckel is working with multiple fire departments to build strong preventative mental health programming and provide consultation to their peer support teams. Dr. Dunckel utilizes an integrative approach of cognitive behavioral and client-centered therapy to promote change. She has been trained in many cognitive-behavioral techniques including mindfulness and is certified in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). She also holds a certification in First Responder Counseling.
Alison Fienning, MSW
Neck Up Check Ups: Preventing suicide through prevention
Alison Fienning is an experienced mental health professional with over a decade of experience. She holds a bachelors in social work from Ohio University and Masters in social work from the University of Cincinnati. She is a Licensed Independent Social Worker with Supervision Designation (LISW-S) for Ohio.
In 2017, she founded Pinpoint Behavioral Health Solutions, specializing in first responders emergency workers and military communities across multiple states. Alison’s dedication extends beyond her professional roles; As a spouse of a firefighter, she’s deeply connected to the first responder world, certified as an IAFF peer supporter (spouse) and proficient in Critical Incident Stress Management.
She’s also involved in education, facilitating with Great Oaks Career Campuses, and is a master instructor for the Center for Relationship Education. Alison’s efforts to destigmatize mental health, has led to her team being embedded in several public service entities.
She has trademarked the term Neck up Check Ups as they have deployed mental health wellness checks among departments between Ohio and Kentucky. In 2023, she became an area clinician for the DEA in the Detroit division.
Her company, Pinpoint, has received awards for excellence, and she’s been recognized as a local healthcare hero. Allison’s leadership at pinpoint has reshaped perceptions of mental health and 1st responder in military communities, embodying dedication, compassion, and unwavering commitment.
Khoo Swee Giang
Enhancing Mental Health Literacy of Emergency Responders through E-learning
Khoo Swee Giang is a counseling psychologist with over ten years of experience in the mental health profession and the Singapore Public Service.
She graduated with a psychology degree from the National University of Singapore in 2007, and completed the Master of Applied Psychology program with the Nanyang Technological University in 2019, specializing in counseling psychology.
As Head of the Care and Wellness Office in the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), she leads her team in driving mental health outreach efforts in the organization and providing psychological support interventions to Force personnel.
She was conferred the SCDF Pride and Care Star Award in 2019, and the Commissioner of SCDF’s Commendation Award in 2021. She also received the SCDF Overseas Service Medal in 2023 for her deployment as an in-situ psychologist with the SCDF’s Operation Lionheart contingent to Turkey in February 2023.
Dr. Guste Gramaglia
Does their personality count? Firefighter personality traits relationship with leadership styles, work motivation, and general well-being
Guste Gramaglia a psychologist at Firefighters Training School of the Republic of Lithuania and has a private practice as a clinical psychologist.
She pursued her academic and professional journey with a passion for understanding psychological well-being and helping people cope with the challenges they face. She completed her bachelor’s at Mykolas Romeris University in Lithuania and then pursued a master’s degree in Clinical and Community Psychology at Turin University in Italy.
Following that, Gramaglia obtained a Psychodrama Assistant license at Psychodrama Association of Lithuania. Lastly, while working with firefighters she decided to start her PhD studies at Mykolas Romeris University and conducted her research on firefighter motivational changes and factors have influence on it.
After working with firefighters for 6 years, she also was a lecturer, and a head of the Psychological consulting department at Mykolas Romeris University in Vilnius, Lithuania.
In October, 2023, Gramaglia obtained a III-degree Medal of Merit in the field of firefighters psychology. During this job she gained incredible experience in teaching firefighters on how to cope with stress, deal with critical situations, and how to give emotional support.
She’s done much work in suicide prevention and she conducts individual and group consultations for fire service specialists.
Dr. Megan McElheran
Identifying and Addressing Operational Stress in First Responders and Their Families: Evidence from Two Psychoeducation and Support Programs
Megan McElheran is a Clinical Psychologist and the Chief Executive Officer of Wayfound, a national organization that provides mental health services across Canada.
Dr. McElheran’s research over the last 20 years has been focused on the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of operational stress injuries in active-duty military, veterans, and public safety personnel.
Dr. McElheran’s passion and interest in proactively preventing operational stress led her to develop the Before Operational Stress (BOS) program as a way to address gaps in proactive mental health training for public safety personnel and frontline workers.
Dr. McElheran completed graduate training at the Stanford University Clinical Psychology Consortium, during which she obtained specialized training in the treatment of PTSD through the National Center for PTSD in Menlo Park, CA.
Dr. McElheran routinely engages in teaching and supervisory activity to ensure sound dissemination of empirically-grounded interventions for trauma, providing a range of empirically-supported treatments for PTSD, including Prolonged Exposure, which is a therapy for which she also provides supervision; Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR); Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ARTS).
Dr. McElheran is a TEDx alumni and has participated in a number of panels and speaking engagements across Canada and the United States about proactive mental health training for first responders. Dr. McElheran also received the Queen’s Jubilee in 2013 for her pioneering work in mental health research.
Dr. Mellena Nichols
Fatigue Management for Emergency Responders
Mellena Nichols is an Associate Professor of Occupational Safety and Health at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, where she has been teaching Occupational Safety and Health for 10 years.
Additionally, she has over 10 years of diverse industry experience which includes metal fabrication, food industry, and consulting in the transportation industry, prior to her appointment at Southeastern. She is also a member of the Oklahoma Safety Council Board of Directors, the Board of Certified Safety Professionals, and a member of The American Society of Safety Professionals, and International Public Safety Administration.
Dr. Nichols earned her PhD in Fire and Emergency Management Administration from Oklahoma State University. Her doctoral dissertation evaluated the effects of fatigue on the cognitive function of firefighters working both 24- and 48-hour shifts.
Her mission is for fire departments to recognize and control the risks of fatigue and reduce both physical and psychological trauma caused by excessive fatigue exposure.
Fire Captain Ben Neff
Fatigue Management for Emergency Responders
Ben Neff is the IAFF Local 3483 President, a Captain and an Advanced EMT at Coweta Fire Department in Oklahoma. He obtained his Master of Science in Fire and Emergency Management at Oklahoma State University, graduating with highest honors, with a focus on active attacks and first responder health and wellness.
Neff has earned many certifications including Rescue technician, ALERRT Integrated Response Instructor, and Peer Counselor. He is responsible for developing the first integrated response model for active threats in Oklahoma.
He has presented rapid task force and active shooter response topics alongside premier subject matter experts in the field as well as serving as a mediator for Active Attack Response at the International Public Safety Association conference.
He has served as the Secretary for IPSA, serving on multiple committees and co-authoring several best practices guides.
In his post-graduate studies, Neff has studied the health and wellness of first responders and firefighters in particular. Ben has championed a first responder focused Employee Assistance Program successfully as well as other health and wellness initiatives successfully in negotiations with the city.
He is a passionate advocate for novel approaches to firefighter mental health after experiencing his own difficulties after over two decades serving his community.
Dr. Ryan Roberts
Preemployment Psychological Evaluations of Firefighter Candidates: Adapting the California POST Screening Dimensions
Ryan Roberts completed his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and received his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School in 2008. He earned his Ph.D. at the California School of Professional Psychology.
He is the President and co- owner of Law Enforcement Psychological Services, Inc. (LEPS) the oldest and largest psychological screening services firm for police and public safety agencies in the San Francisco Bay Area, and one of the biggest independent firms providing these services in the U.S.
He is also a co-owner of Public Safety Psychological Services (PSPS), the largest provider of pre-employment psychological evaluations for first responders in the Pacific Northwest.
Dr. Roberts fulfills multiple functions for LEPS, Inc. including that of legal counsel, researcher, manager, and screening psychologist. He is responsible for monitoring legal compliance related to our pre-employment screening business as well as conducting innovative research in the field.
Dr. Roberts is licensed to practice clinical psychology in the states of California, Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Idaho, Illinois, New York, Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia.
Dr. Lewis Z. Schlosser
Psychological Fitness for Duty Evaluations in the Fire Service
Lewis Schlosser is the managing partner at the Institute for Forensic Psychology, which is a police and public safety focused specialty practice serving agencies in New Jersey, New York, Maine, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.
Dr. Schlosser is a licensed psychologist in New York, New Jersey, Maine, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. He is Board Certified in Police and Public Safety Psychology by the
American Board of Professional Psychology.
Dr. Schlosser has conducted over 15,000 police and public safety psychological evaluations, including pre-employment and fitness for duty evaluations. He provides training to police and public safety personnel on a variety of topics related to officer mental health, with special expertise in fitness for duty and officer wellness.
Dr. Schlosser is a member and past Chair of the Police Psychological Services Section of the IACP. He currently serves as the Chief Psychologist for the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police.
Dr. Kelly Schwartz
Identifying and Addressing Operational Stress in First Responders and Their Families: Evidence from Two Psychoeducation and Support Programs
Kelly Dean Schwartz is an Associate Professor and Director of Clinical Training, School and Applied Child Psychology, at the University of Calgary. He has a Ph.D. in Social Psychology and an MSc in Educational Psychology from the University of Calgary.
A registered psychologist since 1993, he is presently the Clinical Director for Child and Adolescent Assessment, at Wayfound Mental Health.
Schwartz is a Researcher with the Canadian Institute of Military and Veteran Health Research (CIMVHR) and the Canadian Institute for Public Safety Research and Treatment (CIPSRT), and he is currently the Principal Investigator on a Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) PSP Team Grant building and testing evidence-informed programs for families of first responders.
Dr. Cerise M. Vablais
Preemployment Psychological Evaluations of Firefighter Candidates: Adapting the California POST Screening Dimensions
Dr. Vablais received her MBA from the University of Washington’s Executive program in 2000 and her doctoral degree in clinical psychology from Fielding Graduate University in
2007. Her doctoral dissertation focused on the varied presentation of psychopathy in female offenders received an award from the Society for the Scientific Study of Psychopathy.
She has extensive experience in forensic assessment which she gained working for the Maryland Department of Public Safety and the Maryland Department of Health & Mental Hygiene. Prior to returning to Washington in 2011, she worked as a psychologist and the Director of Mental Health for the Anne Arundel County Detention Center in Annapolis, Maryland. From 2011 – 2015, she worked on the executive leadership team at Fairfax Hospital, an acute crisis stabilization inpatient facility.
Dr. Vablais is the Managing Member of Public Safety Psychological Services (PLLC), the largest provider of pre-employment psychological evaluations for first responders in the Pacific Northwest, and also serves as a member of the North Sound Metro SWAT CNT team.
She is currently the General Chair of the Police Psychological Services Section of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and is Board Certified in Police
and Public Safety Psychology through the American Board of Professional Psychology. She is currently licensed in 11 states and holds the PsyPact credential to practice in 38 states.
Robert Avsec – Master of Ceremonies
Battalion Chief Robert Avsec (Ret.) served with the Chesterfield (Va.) Fire & EMS Department for 26 years. Chief Avsec earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Cincinnati and his master’s degree in executive fire service leadership from Grand Canyon University.
He is a 2001 graduate of the National Fire Academy’s EFO Program and is a frequent contributor writing for FireRescue1.com and FireChief.com. Avsec is the author of the book, “Successful Transformational Change in a Fire and EMS Department: How a Focused Team Created a Revenue Recovery Program in Six Months – From Scratch.”
Robert Avsec - Master of Ceremonies
Robert Avsec is a retired fire department battalion chief who completed a successful and rewarding 1st career with the Chesterfield (Va.) Fire & EMS Department after 26-years.
During that time, he also enjoyed a long and distinguished career as an instructor in the emergency services field, serving as an adjunct Fire Instructor for the Virginia Department of Fire Programs and as an adjunct instructor for his own department’s Training and Safety Division. Chief Avsec also served as a contract instructor for the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland from 1992 to 2007.
In 2012 he “found” his true 2nd career as a freelance writer who contributes on-line content monthly to FireRescue1.com and EMS1.com. Chief Avsec hosts his own blog, Talking “Shop” 4 Fire and EMS, where he and his guest bloggers write weekly about leadership and management issues in the fire service and EMS.
In 2022, He had his first book published, Successful Transformational Change in a Fire and EMS Department: How a Focused Team Created a Revenue Recovery Program in Six Months–From Scratch.
Chief Avsec earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Fire and Safety Engineering Technology from the University of Cincinnati, master’s degree in Executive Fire Service Leadership through Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona, and he’s a 2001 graduate of the NFA’s Executive Fire Officer Program.
He lives in Charleston, West Virginia and in his spare time he enjoys snow skiing and golf. (If it’s white, he skis it, if it’s green he hits golf balls off it).
Dr. Carla Sutton Moore
Developing Psychological Wellness Programs in the Fire Service
Dr. Carla Sutton Mooreis a licensed psychologist and has worked in the field of mental health for over 22 years, and specifically with the fire service and other first responders for over 17 years. She has worked in several settings, including a juvenile court mental health clinic, residential treatment facility, managed care, private practice, and city government.
Currently, Dr. Moore is the Founder and Clinical Director of Moore to Life Counseling and Consulting, LLC. She also enjoys her current work as a Chief Psychologist for the City of Atlanta Public Safety Behavioral Health Wellness Unit, providing oversight in the implementation of annual wellness checks, psychoeducation and resilience training, and other prevention and wellness programming for Atlanta Fire Rescue, Police, and Corrections. She also consults with other Atlanta metropolitan agencies regarding prevention, resilience, and mental health wellness for firefighters and law enforcement officers.
Dr. Moore is a board member of the Georgia Psychological Foundation, and Co-Chair of the First Responder Mental Health Initiative Committee. She is also a member of the Southeastern Psychological Association’s Committee for Equality of Professional Opportunity and the American Psychological Association’s Division 18–Psychologists in Public Service.
She has presented research findings at conferences such as Fire-Rescue International and the Society for Criminal and Police Psychology conference. Dr. Moore has conducted research on help-seeking behaviors and clinical outcomes of firefighters that received treatment voluntarily in an internal EAP setting. Research findings have informed prevention program development, and wellness and resiliency training that is offered to City of Atlanta Fire and Rescue, as well as other metro Atlanta fire departments.
Dr. Moore is married and has two children. She enjoys traveling, exercising, singing, dancing, and volunteering with her Atlanta Falcons Cheerleader Alumni group, and trying new foods. Her strong faith, and her connection with family and community keeps her grounded and resilient.
Chief Roderick M. Smith
Developing Psychological Wellness Programs in the Fire Service
Roderick “Rod” M. Smith has twenty-eight years of fire service experience with the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department. He has extensive knowledge and training in numerous aspects of the fire service, including structural and aircraft rescue and firefighting, technical rescue, hazardous materials, administration and personnel management, public education and relations, research and development, strategic planning, Emergency Medical Service, executive development and Homeland Security.
Chief Smith has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance from Morehouse College and a master’s degree in Public Administration (MPA) from Columbus State University. He is a founding member of the Fire Services Information Technology Consortium. Also, he holds numerous certifications to include Paramedic, Post Certified Instructor, NIMS Type-3 Communications Leader, ARC ESRI GIS I & II. Chief Smith recently completed the National Fire Academy’s Executive Officers Program.
Brandy Carlson-Moore, MSW
Developing a Behavioral Health Access Program for firefighters and their families
Brandy is the Deputy Director of the 2nd Alarm Project. She holds a Master of Social Work degree from Florida State University with a specific focus in policy, leadership, and administration. Brandy’s work at 2nd Alarm Project includes training first responders on developing Behavioral Health Access Programs (BHAPs) and leadership in mental wellness for first responders. She was instrumental in the creation of the BHAP Toolkit which serves as the foundational resource for 2nd Alarm Project’s BHAP capacity building and technical assistance efforts with first responder departments. She also provides direct supervision and oversight to first responders, clinicians, and other BHAP subject matter experts on the team. After over 23 years of working to increase individual safety, well-being, and organizational health, she has a deep and diverse skillset in working with leadership teams, first responders, clinicians, and direct social service providers.
Prior to working at the 2nd Alarm Project,
Brandy served as President of Strategic Empowerment Consulting working with
organizations in various capacities including: grant writing, strategic
planning, leadership development, curriculum development, and mitigating
burnout in the workplace. Brandy has served on nine statewide advisory
committees and conducted over 500 trainings on a wide variety of topics such as
Board Governance, Critical Incident Leadership and Support, Crisis and Disaster
Management, Mental Health Awareness, and Strategic Planning. Previously, in her
work to end domestic violence, she and her team trained hundreds of first
responders on handling best practices in handling domestic violence crimes. Her
professional roles have included direct service work, middle management, and
executive leadership. Brandy is married to her best friend Dan who is a
Firefighter Engineer at the Tallahassee Fire Department. She is a mom to two
amazing little ones that keep her learning and growing daily.
Dr. Deborah C Beidel
Responding to Mass Casualties: Mental Wellness Deployments to a Hurricane and a Building Collapse
Dr. Deborah C. Beidel is Trustee Chair and Pegasus Professor of Psychology and Medical Education and Director of UCF RESTORES at the University of Central Florida. UCF RESTORES is a clinical research center dedicated to changing how PTSD is understood, diagnosed, and treated.
Dr. Beidel received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in clinical research at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic. She holds Diplomates in Clinical Psychology and Behavioral Psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology and is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science.
Dr. Beidel is a leader in the area of traumatic stress and her use of virtual reality to treat PTSD has led to the development of treatments that are two to three times more effective than standard psychological interventions. She is also the author of over 300 scientific publications including journal articles, book chapters, and books.
Dr. Beidel has received over $31 million dollars in federal research funding throughout her career, developing effective treatments for anxiety and PTSD and then disseminating them into standard clinical practice. She consults regularly with state and federal governmental agencies as well as community organizations on how to deal with the aftermath of mass violence.
Dr. Nicole L. Sawyer
Fire Service Mental Health and Wellness in a Small, Rural State: Filling Gaps and Overcoming Barriers
Dr. Nicole L Sawyer is a licensed clinical psychologist in Exeter, New Hampshire. She has served the public safety population exclusively for over 10 years.
Dr. Sawyer is the Clinical Director for several fire department peer support teams, including the Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire Peer Team. She is also a supporting psychologist for the New Hampshire State Police Peer Support Unit and is an instructor for the New Hampshire chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness and its Crisis Intervention Team training program. She is also the crisis intervention specialist for multiple SWAT and emergency response teams.
In addition to her community leadership roles, she provides psychological consultation, assessment, and evaluation for several local police and Fire/EMS departments across New Hampshire, as well as the New Hampshire State Police and the Department of Corrections. She is a frequent speaker on such topics as trauma mitigation and early crisis detection for public safety professionals.
Susan Brown
Ms. Susan Brown is a Lead Clinician and Trainer at Forge VFR Health. She has been in clinical practice for thirty years. Susan worked in rural EMS as an EMT-I for over ten years, her father retired from the fire service as chief and served in the Army National Guard, and her husband served in the Marine Corps and retired from law enforcement. She has had the privilege and honor of working with the first responder and military population for much of her career.
Susan has been involved in critical incident response for over 25 years. She maintains an individual caseload, provides wellness and mental health training at the state and local level within public safety, she is an embedded clinician at Manchester, New Hampshire Police Department, she serves on the Southern New Hampshire Regional CISM and Peer Support Team and facilitates First Responder retreats at Camp Resilience.
Joseph Elliott
Origin and development of the peer support program in the Cincinnati Fire Department.
Joseph Elliott is the Peer Support Coordinator for the Cincinnati Fire Department and has been a career firefighter/paramedic for 16 years. He also serves on the Cincinnati Fire Fighters Union Local 48 Executive Board and has served on the Tri-State Peer Support Team for the last five years
Firefighter Elliott holds a bachelor’s degree in emergency services administration from Anna Maria College and is currently working on his master’s in organizational leadership. His passion for mental health comes from the stigma surrounding mental health within the first responder community and seeing some of his co-workers struggle with mental health.
When off-duty, Elliott enjoys traveling and seeing the world with his two daughters and wife.
Dr. Erica Birkley
Origin and development of the peer support program in the Cincinnati Fire Department.
Dr. Erica Birkley is a psychologist and owner of Birkley Consulting. Dr. Birkley performs psychological testing, including post conditional offer of employment and fitness-for-duty psychological evaluations, stress inoculation and recovery training, well visits, critical incident response and planning, and consultation for first responder agencies. Dr. Birkley’s mission is to serve, nurture, and heal first responders with trustworthy expert care.
Her vision is to contribute to agency vitality, bolster peer support and mental health initiatives in our region and bring hope to first responders and their families. Dr. Birkley is married to her high school sweetheart and lives with her seven-year-old daughter on the eastside of Cincinnati. Her happy place is in dirt-stained overalls tending to her garden.
Michael Anthony Schlenk
Using the A.M.E.S. (Assemble, Measure, Execute, Systematic Use) organizational health assessment to assess public safety provider behavioral health.
Mr. Michael Schlenk is a first-year doctoral student at the University of Central Florida’s Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program. He has a background in project management and data analytics examining first responder health and wellness.
As part of multiple grant funded projects, Mr. Schlenk has co-led organizational health assessments for multiple fire service agencies across the state of Georgia and assisted in the development of wellness check programming for public safety agencies.
His research interests include understanding the experiences and health concerns–namely substance use–by female public safety personnel to promote more informed and tailored interventions.
Gustė Gramaglia
Understanding what motivates firefighters to work and challenges to that motivation.
Ms. Guste Gramaglia is a psychologist at Firefighters Training School for the Republic of Lithuania and a lecturer at Mykolas Romeris University. She pursued her academic and professional journey with a passion for understanding psychological well-being and helping people cope with the challenges they face.
Ms. Gramaglia completed her bachelor’s degree at Mykolas Romeris University in Lithuania and her master’s degree in clinical and Community Psychology at Turin University in Italy. She was licensed as a Psychodrama Assistant by the Psychodrama Association of Lithuania.
She is currently pursuing a PhD at Mykolas Romeris University with an emphasis on conducting research on how a firefighter’s motivation changes and factors that influence it. Ms. Gramaglia has been working with firefighters for five years and has gained incredible experience in teaching firefighters how to cope with stress, deal with critical situations, and how to give emotional support. She’s done much work in suicide prevention and she conducts individual and group consultations for fire service specialists.
Dr. Abby Morris
The effects of sleep deprivation on firefighters
Dr. Abby Morris received degrees from Cornell University and Georgetown School of Medicine and completed her residency training at Johns Hopkins Hospital. She is double board certified in Psychiatry/neurology and Addiction medicine. She has been a physician for 20 years and has been working as a medical director for the last 15 years.
Dr. Morris has worked in diverse medical settings including as the Medical Director for a CMHC, as the Medical Director for an Assertive Community Treatment program and as the Medical director of a 24-bed psychiatric unit in a Johns Hopkins Hospital in suburban Maryland. She is currently the Medical Director of the IAFF Center of Excellence, a stand-alone mental health treatment facility for first responders with PTSD, addiction, or other behavioral health challenges.
Dr. Morris has been awarded many local and regional honors for her academics and work in her field and is considered an international expert in first responder mental health and trauma. She has been on multiple news programs, panels, and conference forums and has been invited to teach in a variety of settings around the country and internationally.
She also serves as the medical consultant for the SWAT/CIT team in Montgomery County, Maryland and was named the Volunteer of the Year by that county’s police department in 2017. However, Dr. Morris is most proud to be the mother of two incredible young men.
Battalion Chief (Ret.) James W Peal
Chief Peal is a graduate of Georgia State University who began his career in the fire service as a volunteer firefighter before serving for 30 years with the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department. During his career, Chief Peal served as a fire medic, Fire Communication Watch commander, company officer, section chief for the Office of Professional Standards and Battalion Chief, in both field operations and airport operations.
Chief Peal was actively involved in training firefighters on various topics, most of which involved firefighter safety. Chief Peal has always believed that a firefighter’s physical and mental fitness is one of the cornerstones of firefighter safety and organizational stability.
Fire Marshal Vincent Anderson
Building collaboration between the fire service and allied professionals is a career passion for Vincent Anderson. He currently serves as the Fire Marshal with the City of Redlands (Calif.) Fire Department, a historic, yet expanding community that utilizes extensive community risk reduction initiatives for proactive protection from the risks of wildfires, earthquakes, and medical emergencies. Vince obtained his Master’s in Public Administration from Liberty University and holds a Bachelor of Arts in History with a minor in Public Affairs from UCLA. He is also a Registered Primary Instructor with California State Fire Marshal/State Fire Training, and an Adjunct Professor with Moreno Valley College. In all of these opportunities he endeavors to advocate for the fire prevention and community risk reduction specialists across the fire service community.
