Counselor Paula Booth has been working with law enforcement officers and other clients for over 35 years with the state of New Hampshire. Her unique knowledge of critical incidents and trauma response has made her a valuable asset to many agencies. She is also the director for the New Hampshire Employee Assistant Program. Paula has a masters degree in clinical social work from Boston University, is a member of the National Academy of Certified Social Workers, and is nationally certified as an employee assistance professional. Additionally, she has served as the president of the Grant State employee assistant program. Paula works on the governor and attorney general’s commission on domestic violence, and is an advisor to the state government’s decision makers. Her lectures at conferences, community events, and state sponsored events are well renowned. To Wayne, Paula Booth was his counselor after the critical incident that took place in Colebook in which he was shot.
Our Sponsors:
Wildlife Heritage Foundation of NH
International Wildlife Crime Stoppers
Here’s What We Discuss:
- Introduction to Paula Booth
- Counseling is very different in today’s world
- Wayne’s breaking point
- Counseling is for everyone
- Everyone has a critical incident in their life
- Healthy people get help
- Education on counseling to law enforcement
- We ask for help all the time, why not this?
- Affects officers, family members, peers
- Academy program: stress management in law enforcement
- Traumatic experience from those that were on vacation
- Critical incident tools
- Simple, briefs directives
- Eat something simple
- Don’t fill the silence
- Look into programs
- Supervisors and peers watch you
- Don’t use a cookie cutter approach
- Connection is important
- I’ve got the best job in the world
- Make it palatable
- If I didn’t have counseling, I wouldn’t have finished my career
- Horrible week for New Hampshire
- Approach it from a problem solving perspective
- Make the appointment, you can always cancel it
- Give and take
- Uniform represents so much
- Partners and supporters take the journey too