Local first responders, including law enforcement, emergency medical, mental health and others gathered at the Wood County Resiliency Center this week for training to help deal with people in crisis, how to deescalate a situation and how to get them the help they need. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)

PARKERSBURG — Around 18 first responders participated in a training program this week to learn how to help and deal with people in crisis.

The training, which was conducted at the Wood County Resiliency Center over the past week, taught responders communication skills, how to respond to people in crisis, what mental health resources are available in their community, how people can be connected to those resources and more.

The training involved responders from local law enforcement agencies like the Wood County Sheriff’s Department, the Vienna Police Department and the Parkersburg Police Department as well as emergency medical responders, mental health professionals from Westbrook Health Services and others.

The week-long training session was being conducted with the Trigon Training Group through a grant through The West Virginia First Foundation and taught responders how to talk and interact with people in crisis. They received training on mental health states, pharmacology, deescalation and more. They had people come in who had been through a crisis and talk to the responders about what it was like when law enforcement responded to their mental health crisis and how they felt.

“It is truly a collaborative program,” said Kevin Miller of Trigon. “This is the first one of these kinds of training done in the Parkersburg area.”

On Friday the participants in the training went through a scenario where they had a person threatening to jump from a bridge and the responders were judged on how they interacted with the subject and the things they did to help the person, deescalate the situation, prevent the unnecessary use of force and were critiqued on things they did right and the things they could have done differently. The whole time there was simulated noise of things that might be happening from traffic noise to other sounds that could impact how responders react to a situation.

The training started earlier in the week with basic situations and it built up throughout the week and finally on Friday was the advanced situation with a number of distractions that responders would have to deal with.

“We are trying to build upon that skillset as it goes throughout the week,” Miller said. “What we are looking for is if they are doing what we call `The Four Plays.’

“Are they using their name when they are talking to them, are you labeling their emotions (frustration, anger and so on), are you reflecting what you are being told and doing active listening.”

The training also involved field trips to local facilities dealing with mental health and more.

Many of the responders got into this line of work because they wanted to be able to help people, Miller said.

“This training gives them more tools and skills to be able to better help people,” he said. “The end goal of this class is we gave them some more tools so that they can better help people.”

Miller commended the people in charge of the various agencies for allowing their people to come and be a part of the training as it is a huge commitment of time.

“I think that should be commended,” he said. “It shows their commitment to their community.”

Following a graduation ceremony Friday, Mike Wells of Trigon told the participants they were the inaugural class for this area and urged them to be ambassadors for Crisis Intervention Teams.

“It is about treating people with dignity and respect,” he said. “Remember, don’t join the crisis. When you get there, don’t make it worse. Try to make it better and be a thermostat, not a thermometer.”

Brian Swiger of the Wood County Sheriff’s Department thought the training was very good.

“It brought us back to what we got into this line of work to do,” he said. “It is about treating people with dignity and giving them the chance to comply with what is being requested of them.

“It all really advances the whole idea of why we do this.”