Mark Bouchard has been in law enforcement since 2007 and has a Master’s degree in leadership, studying culture and mental health in policing. He’s the author of “Setting my sights on stigma: thoughts from an injured mind” - a candid and personal exploration of his own mental health journey and PTSD diagnosis.

In this episode, Mark talks openly about some of the critical incidents he’s been involved in as a police officer, and the impact these can have on the mental health and wellbeing of front-line first-responders in the emergency services.

We discuss leadership, and Mark gives practical examples of how leaders can create psychological safety and how we can all encourage and support people to be open about seeking support for their mental health.

What is the role of leadership in setting the culture for a workplace, and what’s actually down to you - as an individual, and in your own teams - when it comes to creating culture, and supporting the people around you, when they need to talk about their mental health?

This episode contains mentions of operational police call-outs, PTSD and suicide. If you think this episode might affect you in any way, you can find links to support resources in the show notes.

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LINKS

• Mark Bouchard's website
• Connect with Mark on LinkedIn
• Police Mentors channel on YouTube

REFERENCES

• Ontario coroner’s inquiry report (2021) into police suicides
• CIPSRT research publications into stressors and mental health in Canadian public services
• Books from this podcast on Amazon (via affiliate links):
  • Mark Bouchard (2023) - Setting my sights on stigma : thoughts from an injured mind
  • Dr. Kevin Gilmartin (2021) - Emotional survival for law enforcement: A guide for officers and their families (revised edition)
  • Dave Grossman & Lauren Christensen (2008) - On combat: The psychology and physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and in Peace