Midstate EMS CISM Team

06/10/2026

Free mental health first aid training available both in person and virtual

💚 One conversation can make a difference.

Mental Health First Aid equips community members with the skills to recognize signs of mental health or substance use challenges, offer support, and connect individuals with professional help when needed.

Join us for a FREE Adult or Youth Mental Health First Aid training this summer. Multiple virtual and in-person options are available.

✅Register here: https://forms.gle/NBAxCd7vdF5pRAB47

Together, we can help create healthier, more supportive communities for everyone.

For questions:
📞 (315) 815-4141
📩 [email protected]

05/01/2026

May is mental health awareness month. Please take care of yourself, your mental health and wellbeing. Stay strong you are not in this alone.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and in EMS, this conversation matters more than most.

This work asks a lot of you.
Long shifts.
High stress calls.
Decisions that don’t leave you when the shift ends.

And while EMS leaders are focused on taking care of their teams, it’s just as important to recognize that support starts at the top.

Checking in with your people.
Creating space for honest conversations.
Normalizing the need for support.
And making sure resources are more than just something on paper.

Mental health isn’t a once a year conversation. It’s part of building a sustainable, healthy workforce.

If you’re leading, this is part of the job.
And if you’re struggling, you’re not alone.

Let’s keep this conversation going all month.

(Photo credit: Chris Swabb, On Assignment Studios, sister company of Janet Smith & Associates)

04/02/2026

Moral injury in our first responders

🚨 Not all trauma comes from what you see…

Some of it comes from what you had to do.
Or what you couldn’t do.

This is what we call moral injury.

And for first responders, it’s more common than we talk about.

Research shows that moral injury often:
🧠 Happens as part of the job—not outside of it
⚠️ Is hard to recognize in the moment
💔 Shows up as guilt, shame, or feeling like you failed someone

Over time, it can lead to:
• Isolation from others
• Loss of trust
• Lower self-worth
• Even spiritual or identity struggles

💡 Here’s the part we need to pay attention to:

Many first responders don’t talk about this—
because it doesn’t always look like “trauma” the way we expect it to.

It looks like:
👉 “I should have done more”
👉 “I made the wrong call”
👉 “That shouldn’t have happened”

🛡️ What first responders in the research said actually helps:
✔️ Talking about it openly
✔️ Breaking the stigma around needing support
✔️ Being proactive—not waiting until it gets worse
✔️ Building a trusted support system

👉 This isn’t about weakness.
👉 This isn’t about doing the job wrong.

This is about carrying the weight of decisions made in impossible situations.

If this hits home for you—
you’re not the only one who has felt it.

And you don’t have to carry it alone.

03/27/2026

To all our dispatchers and communication specialist. This lunch and learn is for you. Focusing on Compassion fatigue at the consol. April 16th, 2026, from 12-1 pm. As dispatcher's and communication specialist, every emergency starts with you. You are there for everyone's worst moments, and your voice of reason and calm is what makes the rest of the incident go smooth. Your not alone and we are here for you. Stay safe and remember to breath through the pressure.

Join us for a free Lunch ad Learn to commemorate National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week in April! Public safety telecommunicators are often the first point of contact during emergencies, serving as a calm and steady voice for callers experiencing crisis and trauma. We will explore the impact of compassion fatigue within the 911 profession.

Registration: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/4HYmxt5WSkqa7q1-Tvrd3w #/registration

03/26/2026

Come join us at the Midstate EMS spring fling. We will have a table setup with our CISM members, handing out flyers, stickers and answering any questions you may have about CISM. Applications will be on hand. We will also be doing a 50/50 and raffle baskets to support our education in CISM. May 22nd, 2026. CME day from 8 am to 4 pm for $10, and 6 pm to 10 pm for the annual recognition and awards ceremony, $15. Spots are limited so signup soon.