You might have heard that the Integrated Primary Prevention (IPP) program has just graduated its first class of 100 resilience coordinators (RCs). Now every district has a trained RC — even Patrol Forces Southwest Asia (PATFORSWA). But what you may not have heard is how the RCs are going to help make the Coast Guard stronger, healthier, and safer.
RCs are educated in stress management, sleep hygiene, nutrition, physical fitness, and other areas — which, if neglected, can result in poor health outcomes down the line. They’re also specifically educated on health trends in the Coast Guard workforce.
The all-volunteer RC force will serve as peer resources for their shipmates. They will foster positive behaviors and environments to prevent negative behaviors and events downstream. These positive behaviors are also known as protective factors, and they mitigate the risk of negative behaviors and outcomes. In other words, RCs are here to provide information and referrals about building these positive behaviors for shipmates in need. Essentially, says Petty Officer First Class William Rowland, one of the new RCs — the RCs are “humans that work for the Coast Guard helping other humans that work for the Coast Guard.”
The RC initiative was designed to fill key gaps in the service’s ability to meet members’ wellness needs, according to the IPP program. Coast Guard IPP efforts are part of an armed forces-wide initiative aiming to prevent harmful behaviors like harassment, substance abuse, domestic abuse, sexual assault, and suicide. Prevention science research shows that many of these behaviors have shared risk and protective factors, and that acting early to mitigate stressors or risk factors can help avoid harmful behaviors down the line.
“I listen attentively and with an open mind,” says the RC creed. “I ask my fellow Sentinels to do and to consider things I’ve done and considered myself.”
The first two IPP RC trainings took place June 14 at Training Center (TRACEN) Petaluma and July 12 at TRACEN Yorktown. The sessions were organized and led by the Resilience Coordinator Master Trainers (RCMTs), who were trained by Uniformed Services University Health Services, Consortium of Healthy and Military Performance (CHAMP).
The RCMTs’ work was crucial to the training’s success, noted Dr. Felicia Garland-Jackson, IPP program manager. “I commend the RCMTs, as their work and commitment to the RC program, and IPP, are extraordinary. Without their assistance with training and other project tasks and deliverables, the RC effort simply could not be accomplished,” she said. “I am grateful for the RCMTs and their supervisors/commands who believe in advancing the primary prevention mission in the Coast Guard.”
Want to join an upcoming training? Stay tuned, as there will be more opportunities in the coming fiscal year. The IPP program is also developing policy to clarify the role and purview of RCs.
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