A New Approach: Chief Medina & Pastor Paul work to prevent Blue Suicide
/By Robert Foreman
Chief Gustavo A. Medina of the Tequesta Police Department in Florida has worked in public safety for over 23 years. However, he began his career in New Jersey where he worked for the New Jersey Department of Corrections, the Newark Police Department, the Essex County Prosecutor's Office (ECPO) and the Professional Standards Bureau. His years of experience in New Jersey have given him some valuable insights into officer training and support that he continues to draw from today. However, he did not realize how greatly both he, and his current department, would be impacted when their paths converged with Paul Beresford, a retired Baptist pastor.
“I am so blessed to have met a person like Paul Beresford. He is one of the most sincere, caring, empathetic individuals you will ever meet. He has a genuine love for all, but especially for our men and women in blue. He often stops me in the morning and lets me know if we lost one of our heroes to suicide. He can quote the numbers and tells me every day – 'we need to do more; we need to do better,'" said Chief Medina.
“When I came to the Tequesta PD, I knew I wanted to help implement a program that focuses on the mental health of all our officers. Pastor Paul was sent to get certified in Crisis Intervention, after which I designated him the Critical Incident Stress Manager, a position he will tell you he finds even more personally rewarding than his previous role as a pastor. He is constantly learning new ways to communicate with our officers, and his love and commitment for our men and women is the reason we have been successful with our mental health efforts.”
Chief Medina noted that they started by providing Pastor Paul with his own private office within the police department. In the entry to his office, a sign reads, “Friends, Family gather here.” The sign is Pastor Paul’s way of letting all the officers know that everyone is family and that they are in this together as one.
“The goal was to create an environment where officers feel comfortable to simply talk, air their frustrations, discuss a troubling call or share personal struggles they are experiencing. The officers know that what is shared with Pastor Paul remains between them and he would never violate their trust,” said Chief Medina. “I then made it a point to go in his office, close the door and have my own de-stressing sessions so that my officers could see that it is OK to speak with the pastor. We are all humans first and if a chief, director or superintendent is serious about helping reduce blue suicides, they must lead from the front and be the example.”
Chief Medina believes that the keys to the program being successful are consistency and trust. Without consistency, one would not be able to build trust with the men and women in blue. He noted that the designated person must always be accessible, regardless of the time or day. Additionally, the designated person must be properly trained, not rush the process, and be real and genuine with the officers at all times. Above all else, the person must follow up with the officers and never violate their trust.
“We have also made our program available to other local police departments and we continue to spread the word of the work that Pastor Paul does. I once asked a neighboring police department chief if we could come by on their training day to tell them about the necessary work that Pastor Paul does for us and to let them know there is no shame in asking for help,” said Chief Medina.
“We must never stop working for all of our officers. Not until the day where officer suicides are non-existent, as anything less than that is unacceptable. Our program should not be the exception but instead the norm in law enforcement. No matter the size of your department, if you are blessed to be in charge then be in charge and protect your officers. Our profession is in desperate need of strong leadership that stands up for the great work that our officers are doing in this nation. To repeat Pastor Paul’s words - we need to do more; we need to do better!”
