MIAMI – April 6, 2016 – PRLog — The Addictions Academy announced that they will be offering a specialized course focused on treating fire fighters, paramedics, police officers and first responders, including trauma nurses and doctors in intervention within their own culture.

Dr. Cali Estes, of The Addictions Academy, has teamed up with Don Prince, Ex-Chief and Firefighter from New York to design a course specific to the unique needs of first responders within their own workspace and unique work culture. The course is being taught to the Peer Support Team and Crisis Management Teams within the organization to assist with substance abuse, PTSD, job stress and other mental health issues.

“Our First Responder Intervention training is like no other on the market,” Dr. Estes said. “We saw a need for this type of training because as a culture we rely on the first responders for help when something goes wrong, but because of the stigma of what is expected of them they don’t have access to the same services that the rest of us do.”

The Addictions Academy offers a unique intervention strategy that focuses on the client and the process of using body language and overcoming objections to get the client into treatment. They have coined it the RAAD model and because it is a direct approach, it is especially effective with the opiate population. Therapists, doctors, those in recovery, moms of addicts, and others wanting to learn how to get someone into treatment have taken their classes and applied the techniques learned in everyday life.

Last year alone, 105 plus firefighters took their own lives. Statistically, approximately 10% of the first responder population in the United states has a problem with either addiction or mental health and should be seeking help. Job stress, PTSD, traumatic calls and the cumulative effect of years on the job all factor into the need for escape.

“The stigma of the job, the high stress, lack of services and lack of training are the problem,” Don Prince said. “I had a problem with drinking on the job and it was allowed to continue because people thought they were doing the right thing and they had no idea they weren’t. I took The Addictions Academy’s Advanced Clinical Intervention class and teamed up with Dr. Estes to fill that void with first responder training.”

So far this year, The Addictions Academy has trained the Miami-Dade Police department, Ft Lauderdale Firefighters and Paramedics and the First Responders in West Palm Beach along with some of the police department in Gloucester County, New jersey.

To bring the team to your precinct, please call 1.800.706.038 ext. 2 and prepare for your training.