Firefighters work hard to take care of our communities and keep them safe—but who is taking care of firefighters? The Minnesota Firefighter Initiative (MnFIRE) is one organization. The Improve Group recently finished conducting an evaluation of MnFIRE's Hometown Heroes Assistance Program, which has four pillar programs that support career, volunteer, and on-call firefighters. The pillar programs are:
- Training on health initiatives, operational readiness, and emotional wellness
- Critical illness insurance
- Peer support programming, where a firefighter can connect with a peer who has been through the same challenges
- No cost counselling with 5 free therapy sessions per person
MnFIRE wanted to understand how their programs were working. They also knew that in firefighting culture, there’s a stigma around talking about and seeking help for mental health challenges. We kept this stigma in mind when designing the evaluation.
This was the first time that MnFIRE evaluated their pillar programs, so we first developed a logic model to identify what outcomes they expected from each of the programs. Based on the logic model, we developed and distributed a survey to firefighters across Minnesota. We also conducted interviews to hear more about their experiences with the programs.
Based on our data and analysis, we found thatMnFIRE’s programs are valuable and necessary. They reduce psychological stress, improve workplace culture, and increase access to mental and physical health care. Firefighters said that when they useMnFIRE’s programs, the culture in their workplace shifts and the stigma around mental health is lessened. Beyond the specific programs, collecting stories is a step towards changing the stigma around mental health.
Evaluation can be the first step in unlocking cultural change. Hearing stories from firefighters about the impact of MnFIRE’s programs not only quantifies the power of the programs, but also contributes to changing the culture of mental health within the profession of firefighting.
Looking to demonstrate the power of your programs? Let’s work together! Email our business development team at dang@theimprovegroup.com.