PTSD
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Rescuing first responders from <strong>PTSD</strong> >> continued<br />
Teaming up — Weller, pictured in the middle, developed strong relationships with WCB<br />
case manager Cherie Leeb and Millard Health occupational therapist Jarett Stastny.<br />
away from a scheduled appointment<br />
with a psychologist.<br />
Despite their closeness both on and<br />
off the job, neither Weller nor Turner<br />
had ever spoken about it to the other.<br />
“That’s just the way it is with paramedics,”<br />
shrugs Weller. “We mask<br />
things. We don’t like to show signs of<br />
weakness, especially to our peers, so<br />
we don’t talk about it.”<br />
Turner’s on-the-job suicide changed<br />
all that. It accelerated the movement<br />
aimed at removing the stigma surrounding<br />
<strong>PTSD</strong>.<br />
A catalyst for change<br />
“There’s no question Greg’s suicide<br />
shone a giant spotlight on everything,”<br />
says Cherie Leeb, Weller’s case manager<br />
at WCB. “His death has been a catalyst<br />
for change.”<br />
Member suicide is also what prompted<br />
change at police departments in<br />
Calgary and Edmonton. Both cities now<br />
have reintegration teams tasked with<br />
facilitating a safe return to work for<br />
members diagnosed with psychological<br />
injuries, mental illness or <strong>PTSD</strong>.<br />
Powerful partnership<br />
Last summer, Leeb, whose caseload<br />
routinely includes first responders, met<br />
Sgt. Glen Klose, the head of Edmonton<br />
Police Services’ reintegration team,<br />
while she was working with two of his<br />
officers.<br />
It didn’t take her long to see an<br />
opportunity for a powerful partnership.<br />
“I was just blown away by the<br />
amount of success EPS was having,”<br />
says Leeb. “Everything we needed to<br />
help our Alberta Health Services’ first<br />
10 | WorkSIGHT WINTER 2015