A full-day training on Monday, 3/27 from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm at the Westin.

The ticket includes breakfast, lunch, and all training materials.

Course Description:

The VitalCog in Construction Train the Trainer is a program offered to the construction industry to assist in the training of employees at all levels of a construction organization. In the training, participants will learn to appreciate the critical need for suicide prevention while creating a forum for dialogue and critical thinking about mental health challenges, and by promoting help-seeking and help-giving behaviors. Our vision is to cultivate a construction community of employees who are aspiring to eliminate the devastating impact of suicide. By attending this training, participants will become certified as VitalCog trainers and be supported in the implementation and facilitation of the VitalCog in Construction training.

Objectives:

-Promote critical thinking about suicide prevention

-Open dialogue about mental health and suicide prevention in the construction industry

-Increase the confidence of facilitators to deliver this training to others

About Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas:

Sally is a clinical psychologist and award-winning mental health advocate with her own personal experience of losing her beloved brother to suicide. Her mission is to give voice to people who’ve lived through depression, addiction, and even suicidal despair and leverage their insights to develop bold, gap-filling strategies and programs - approaches that empower cultural and systems change in companies, unions, and professional associations. Changes that support people into recovery and a life worth living. For this work, she was recognized as one of ENR’s top 25 Newsmakers in construction in 2021. Sally is the lead author on the National Guidelines for Workplace Suicide Prevention and president of United Suicide Survivors International. She is an accomplished speaker with a popular TEDx talk and a White House address to her credits.

About Alex Yannacone:

Alex has an extensive background in implementation and training for the prevention and intervention of mental health services and education. As the Director of Education and Community Programs at the Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Depression Center, Alex provides programs and trainings addressing mental well-being for workplaces, schools, and communities across the United States. She is also a master trainer in suicide prevention trainings including QPR & VitalCog.

A full-day training on Monday, 3/27 from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm at the Westin

The ticket includes breakfast, lunch, and all training materials.

Course Description:

Psychological First Aid (PFA) is an evidenced informed, modular approach to assisting individuals to reduce distress after a potentially traumatic event such as natural disasters, terrorism, a public health emergency, or a personal crisis. PFA is a set of 8 core action steps that operate on the assumptions of human resilience and a recognition that strong reactions to potentially traumatic events are common and normal. PFA is based on the evidence-informed principles of safety, calming, connectedness, hope and Self/Community efficacy. PFA is intended to be able to be used by non-clinically trained individuals to assist in supporting their community after a potentially traumatic event. PFA is culturally informed and able to be provided to all age groups. The PFA training is a full-day training and trainees will be provided a certificate of completion.

Objectives:

-Participants will be able to list 5 common reactions to potentially traumatic events

-Participants will be able to identify the 5 evidenced informed principles of Psychological First Aid.

-Participants will be able to describe the 8 core actions of Psychological First Aid Link for details: https://www.nctsn.org/treatments-and-practices/psychological-first-aid-and-skills-for-psychological-recovery/about-pfa

About Sarah Gaer, MA:

Sarah Gaer holds a Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and has 24 years of experience in the field of mental health care. Sarah has been an outpatient clinician, crisis clinician, and member of trauma response teams responding to homicides, suicides, terrorist attacks, and natural disasters. Sarah was the Senior Team Leader for MassSupport Network, the FEMA-funded Crisis Counseling Program responding to Covid19 in Massachusetts. She is a Master Trainer for the QPR Institute and has trained over 1000 first responders in Massachusetts. Sarah currently works as a consultant in suicide prevention and trauma recovery and is spearheading long-term recovery efforts at Holyoke Soldier’s Home, which experienced a mass causality event during Covid-19. Sarah also holds a contract with the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health creating and providing training for Law Enforcement on topics such as suicide prevention, toxic stress, and resilience building.

A full-day training on Monday, 3/27 from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm at the Westin

The ticket includes breakfast, lunch, and all training materials.

Course Description:

Developed and delivered by internationally recognized experts in peer support, Peer Ally 1 is a foundational training in values, principles, and techniques for supporting others with life transitions, mental health, and addiction challenges. This experiential one-day seminar replicates in-depth peer support skills training provided to construction industry leaders around the world.

What Participants Learn:

-What makes peer support special? Who is a peer?

-Peer Support Values and Ethics

-How to create Alliance and Connection Core Communication/Supportive listening techniques

-Effective and appropriate use of personal shared experiences

-How to avoid the advice-giving and the therapy “danger zone”

Seminar participants receive the Peer Ally Training Workbook and 8-hour course certificate / Humannovations-U credit hours.

About Eduardo Vega; M,Psy.:

Eduardo Vega is Humannovations CEO & Founder. Eduardo is an internationally recognized thought leader in mental health systems, peer support programs and policy, workforce development, human rights, and suicide prevention. Vega has developed and provided mental health skills training to construction industry leaders, tradespeople, and site supervisors internationally. He serves on the Steering Committee of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and the Executive Committee of the US National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention.

Resilience is the process of bouncing back from adversity to continually learn and grow. Resilience-to-thriving (R2T) is a positive wellness-oriented and lifestyle approach to the prevention of substance misuse and mental health risks.

A full-day training on Monday, 3/27 from 8:00 am – 5:00 pm at the Westin

The ticket includes breakfast, lunch, and all training materials. Sign up early to receive pre-read materials and best prepare for the training.

Course Description:

This evidence-based, highly interactive course, taught by hundreds of facilitators, is a cognitive-behavioral toolkit to transform stress. R2T is recognized as effective by the US Surgeon General. Participants receive a workbook, toolkit, facilitator notes, session ratings, and a slide deck; a copy of “Raw Coping Power: From Stress to Thriving,” and practice facilitation in the class. Typically delivered in a 90-minute session (either online or in person), R2T can be adapted for participants’ own training and coaching and expanded into a full-day workshop.

Student Objectives:

-Identify the effects of stress, signs of not coping well, and methods for healthy coping

-Recognize one’s own ability to treat stress as a positive resource, enhanced with a healthy lifestyle and coping style

-Learn a practical 5-step method to thrive from stress

Resources

Please download for training details and a sample flyer you can use after the training to advertise FLYER.

About Joel Bennett, Ph.D.:

Developer of this program, Joel has trained over 1,000 facilitators in workplace mental health strategies. He is CEO of Organizational Wellness & Learning Systems (www.organizationalwellness.com), author of seven books, and over thirty peer-reviewed scientific articles. Joel received the 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the field of wellness from the National Wellness Institute.

About John Gaal, EdD:

John is the Director of AFL-CIO’s Missouri Works Initiative’s Worker Wellness Program and a certified R2T facilitator. As a labor representative, he serves on the St. Louis County Workforce Development Board, and the International Vocational Education and Training Association’s Board of Directors. He has published numerous articles related to workforce development.