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Chief: 'It's long overdue for us'

Moscow-Pullman Daily News - 4/2/2021

Apr. 1—The Pullman Police Department chief said suicides among police officers nationwide have increased in recent years.

This week, Gary Jenkins' department announced it is using technology to be proactive in protecting the mental health of its staff.

The department launched an officer wellness app that can be downloaded on Android and Apple devices. It was developed by Cordico, a company that specializes in wellness technology.

The app is intended to provide multiple resources to police officers and their families who may need assistance in addressing issues such as anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder or other mental health problems.

"I think it's long overdue for us," Jenkins said of the app.

Jenkins said it offers a one-button call to department's employee assistance program, a suicide prevention hotline and a crisis hotline.

It also contains what Jenkins called a wellness toolkit with information on overcoming challenges such as anxiety and burnout related to the job. There are also self-assessments for depression, stress and substance abuse.

Contact information for therapists and a chaplain also is listed on the app.

The public can also download the app to get access to the police department's alerts and updates, department contacts, safety tips and links to the department's social media outlets.

A Pullman Police Department wellness committee, made up of department staff members, assisted with the development of this app.

Jenkins said he met Cordico CEO David Black at a conference several years ago and learned about the app. When the city of Pullman approved funding for it this year, the department immediately went to work to make it a reality.

Jenkins said job-related challenges often lead to mental health problems for police officers.

He said police officers typically see people on their worst day. They see tragedies, child abuse, death and people harmed by drugs.

Even in a community as supportive as Pullman, they also feel the added stress of confronting negative attitudes toward the police.

USA Today reported last year that 228 current or former officers died by suicide in 2019 according to a nonprofit called Blue H.E.L.P. More officers died by suicide that year than in the line of duty.

Jenkins said attitudes toward addressing mental health have changed over the years.

"I think in the past there's been a tendency to think that to ask for help is weakness," he said.

Now, police understand that is not true and "we really need to take care of ourselves," he said.

The app can be found on Google Play or the Apple App Store by searching "Pullman Police."

Kuipers can be reached at akuipers@dnews.com.

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