By Police1 Staff
GARLAND, Texas — Police officers in North Texas will have a new tool to support their mental health. The Overwatch Peer Support (OPS) program is described as “a regional approach to peer support” and is produced by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).
According to the website, the OPS program uses trained peer supporters who are members of local first responder communities. This will give first responders access to peers outside of their own agency.
“This drastically increases the amount of peer supporters and resources available to them, while also decreasing concerns of confidentiality issues related to talking about their brain health with co-workers,” according to NAMI.
Todd Gyure, a police officer in Garland, Texas, discussed the program in a recent interview with Christopher Payne, director of programs at NAMI North Texas.
Watch their full interview here:
For more information about the Overwatch Peer Support program, see here.