Veterans Response Training

Click to register for the 8 AM – 10 AM Session

Or

Click to register for the 1 PM – 3 PM Session

The AM and PM training sessions are the same.

Who should attend:
First responders and Stark County community providers who work with veterans.

Description:
This is a skill building training for first responders and Stark County community provider who work with veterans which addresses how to identify veterans, signs of crisis and suicidal thinking, and de-escalation.

Speakers:

Chief William A. Robinson 

Chief William A. Robinson serves as the Chief of Police for the V.A. Central Ohio Healthcare System in Columbus, Ohio where he has worked since January 2016. Chief Robinson is a Veteran of the United States Army and the United States Airforce where he served for a total of 11 years.

He is active with numerous mental health initiatives throughout Central Ohio. He partnered with the Attorney General’s Office and the Criminal Justice Coordinating Center of Excellence CIT program and developed a training program for First Responders on recognizing and responding to veterans in crisis. He has also developed a Veterans Mental Health Evaluation Team (VMET) within his department to assist Veterans that are in crisis.

Chief Robinson is dedicated to increasing positive interactions between First Responders and Veterans and reducing the suicide rate among Veterans.

Dr. Heather Robinson

Dr. Robinson is the Director of the Trauma Recovery Division at the Chalmers P. Wylie ACC and the Clinical Director of the Veterans Mental Health Evaluation Team (VMET).  She has worked at the facility since 2009.  Prior to that she served in the United States Air Force for 4 years as a Captain.

Dr. Robinson attended Mount Vernon Nazarene University and earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology.  She attended Towson University in Maryland and earned her Master of Arts Degree in Clinical Psychology.  Dr. Robinson earned her Doctor of Psychology Degree from Spalding University in Louisville, Kentucky.  Dr. Robinson is also Board Certified in Clinical Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology.

She has a special interest in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and how to help outside agencies identify and work with Veterans who may be struggling with psychiatric symptoms.  Dr. Robinson’s work with the Crisis Intervention Training for First Responders has allowed her to expand her outreach efforts to not only help better equip First Responders when encountering Veterans, but also to help First Responders recognize coworkers who may be struggling given the nature of their work.