The Cheektowaga Police Department in New York is placing a strong emphasis on wellness programs. One of the most important wellness issues taken to heart by the department is the mental health of police officers. Lt. Caleb Harte, Cheektowaga Police Department community services and wellness lieutenant, and Anthony Lebron, Western New York Law Enforcement Helpline president, partnered together to create a mental health wellness pilot project.

In March 2023, Lebron came to the Cheektowaga Police Department, because he thought, with a previous chief proactive in the importance of mental health and previous work with peers, it would make a perfect pilot department for the program.

“We felt that the best way to remove the stigma for law enforcement officers seeking help in the form of mental health was to have everyone in the department attend an annual wellness check-in,” Harte said. “If everyone was taking part in going to see a counselor or clinician, then that stigma of seeking help is gone. No one could say any longer, ‘Oh, look at that guy going to see a counselor. He must be weak and can’t handle this job.’”

Removing the stigma of seeking help for mental health, particularly among careers in law enforcement, is one of the greatest goals of such a program. As Lebron mentioned, “It’s about breaking down all the barriers across the board and showing the benefit to everyone.”

Having such a program for officers can be integral for both their personal and professional lives due to their high-stress profession. Working to erase the stigma and providing a safe place to talk about their mental health can be life-changing for officers.

Harte explained, “It gives them an outlet to address any stressors that are affecting them in their professional or personal lives. They have the ability to seek help and resources with zero judgment if they are struggling. For so long in this profession, the thought has been that nothing affects you. You bury it and keep moving because that’s what cops do. Well, the reality is that hasn’t worked out so well for our fellow responders as law enforcement officers are committing suicide at a faster rate than the bad guys can kill us.

“Something needs to change because going through a law enforcement career without any outlet for all the incidents of trauma that we experience is a recipe for disaster. The cumulative stress can lead to negative outcomes in the form of suicide, divorce, removal from careers and a whole host of interpersonal and relationship issues with family and friends if left unaddressed. Your bucket continues to fill and at some point, it will overflow unless you have an outlet and resources at your disposal to address the traumatic incidents that we witness sometimes daily.”

Creating the mental health program involved a great deal of teamwork and collaboration between the Cheektowaga Police Department administration, department unions, local law enforcement embedded clinicians, Western New York Law Enforcement Helpline, Lawley Insurance and Highmark Insurance. A grant from Highmark Insurance for $20,000 provided the funding necessary for the clinician’s session and associated costs for first responders, both sworn in and not sworn in.

Harte emphasized, “The counselors are crucial to making this work. Without them being invested and dedicated to the law enforcement community in our area, this program doesn’t happen. They have hearts of gold and want to help the law enforcement community in any way that they can.”

Law enforcement officers hired beginning July 1, 2023, and moving forward will have mandatory wellness check-ins annually. For officers hired prior to that date, the annual wellness check-ins are voluntary. Officers can schedule their own appointments once a year so it does not interfere with their schedules. This year they could schedule an appointment any time between Jan. 1 and Oct. 31. Once an officer participates, they receive a wellness resource packet and are given the chance to be connected with additional resources or the clinician if wanted. Once they have participated, the officer then is eligible for the time coming or personal time off, which is offered as a program incentive. Three hours of personal time is offered to those completing the program. However, if 90% of the department takes part, then the amount gets bumped up to five hours.

While this program is new for the Cheektowaga Police Department, it has been well received by law enforcement officers. It gives them a safe, confidential way to discuss any concerns or stressors being experienced as well as provides them with resources and any necessary referrals for desired follow-up on what was discussed. While the appointments are completely confidential, some officers have reached out following their wellness check-ins and had positive responses and seem to feel more confident in following up again with their counselor or another referral. Pre- and post-surveys are being done to gauge thoughts and reactions as well.

“Our hope is that this pilot program can expand to all law enforcement agencies in the western New York area and, hopefully, New York state,” Harte stated. “All first responders, in the form of police officers, firefighters, dispatchers, correction officers and paramedics, should have the ability to seek mental health assistance and complete an annual wellness check-in without judgment in a confidential and safe manner.”

Once this program is complete, the hope is to take the results and show it to other cities and departments. An additional hope is that this program will simply be a part of the contract with the department and union and simply make it a part of regular health. With this pre-incident education, another aim is a cultural change where officers realize it is okay to not be okay and seek help. If another department were considering putting in place a similar wellness program, Harte advised, “Make sure to include all of the parties that will be affected by this program from the ground up. You will run into obstacles and barriers as with anything, but keep fighting and don’t give up. The end result is worth it, and you will undoubtedly be saving lives, careers, marriages and relationships by doing this work.”

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