Practicing Mindfulness in the Fire Service

Estimated watch time: 2 hrs 2 minutes

Presentation Materials:

Molly Jones, LSW

Clinical Education Coordinator for Advanced Recovery Systems

Molly Jones, LSW is a Clinical Education Coordinator for Advanced Recovery Systems. In this role, Molly is responsible for providing clinical education and training to various client populations, treatment providers, and other behavioral health stakeholders across the country. Molly provides in-person, virtual, and on-demand behavioral health education and is able to cover a wide variety of topics under the behavioral healthcare umbrella.

Molly is a Licensed Social Worker in the State of Colorado and based out of Denver, Colorado. Prior to joining the ARS Community Outreach Team in August 2019, Molly worked in a variety of social work settings. She has worked in direct practice, counseling older adults, adolescents, high acuity clients, and other populations struggling with various mental health and substance abuse related issues, as well as a Permanency Planning Worker for the Department of Human Services, Child Welfare Division in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Molly has worked in the field of Social Work since 2013, and holds the philosophy that all individuals, with proper support and awareness, possess the ability to learn, change, and grow to achieve the highest quality of life and sense of self possible.

Molly earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Family Life Education with a focus on Gerontology from the University of Central Oklahoma and a Masters of Social Work from the University of Oklahoma. In her time with Advanced Recovery Systems, Molly has primarily worked with first responders and their families, as well as the International Association of Fire Fighters and various municipalities across North America. Molly is the Peer Team Clinician for the IAFF’s 9th District Peer Support Team, has been featured in news publications and mental health podcasts, and provided clinical oversight to local non-profits in Colorado.\

 

Dr. Zachary Isoma, PsyD

Co-owner of Harbor Psychology

Dr. Zachary Isoma (“Dr. Zack”) is a licensed psychologist working in the Tampa Bay and SouthShore areas. He obtained his Bachelors degree in psychology from Florida State University and went on to obtain his Masters and Doctorate degrees from Pacific University of Oregon. While in graduate school, Dr. Zack focused his studies on forensic and correctional psychology, including conducting assessments for court decisions.

However, while on an APA-accredited internship at Arkansas State Hospital, he discovered a passion for working with men who struggled severely with a history of trauma. As a result, he developed and led a variety of therapy groups for patients within a large inpatient facility. He then completed a post-doctoral residency at a non-profit crisis stabilization unit in Melbourne, Florida, where he continued to focus on providing short-term treatment for patients with a history of trauma, and those with immediate and pressing mental health concerns.

Dr. Zack provides therapy using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a research-based intervention shown to help people live with more meaningful lives while learning how to better cope with painful thoughts and feelings. Dr. Isoma has experience working with clients who have a wide range of mental health presentations and specializes in therapy for men, including those who struggle with a history of trauma and have difficulties expressing their emotions.

Dr. Zack is a Florida native and was raised in Sarasota before moving to Portland, Oregon for graduate school. He moved to Apollo Beach with his wife in 2018. Despite the professional picture presentation, he is a beach bum at heart and loves to spend spare time at the gulf.

Objectives and Summary:

This course is designed to introduce participants to the use of mindfulness with first responders. The presentation will start by providing brief background on common behavioral health problems within the fire service in order to demonstrate the need for resiliency practices, such as mindfulness. Participants will learn about the definition of mindfulness and how it differs from the pop-psychology definition. The course will cover the research on mindfulness as it relates to behavioral health among the general population and the military before discussing applicable evidence related to first responders. In addition, the presenter will discuss how research on mindfulness in sports psychology could relate to operational performance for fire service members. Finally, participants will be invited to try a brief mindfulness training exercise.

Presentation Materials: