County committee backs plan to expand peer support for employees and first responders

The Tompkins County Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee on May 27 discussed expanding peer support for county employees and first responders and began work on a resolution to fund a paid peer‑support coordinator.

Danielle, a Department of Emergency Response staff member who also serves as the county’s peer support coordinator and outreach/education chair for the Tompkins County Suicide Prevention Coalition, described the county’s Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) approach: a short on‑scene “diffusing” check followed by a full debrief within 48–72 hours and voluntary one‑on‑one peer support. “It’s okay not to be okay,” Danielle said, summarizing why the debriefs and peer contacts are important.

The committee heard that the county distributed a workforce wellness survey in February that returned 333 responses (about a 42% response rate), and that in‑person follow‑up sessions are planned to gather more specific needs. Danielle said the goal is to create a culturally competent peer‑support network so employees and first responders can access colleagues who understand the nature of their work; she recommended training at least two peer supporters per department and using a train‑the‑trainer model so the program is not dependent on a single person.

On staffing and costs, Danielle said one paid peer‑support coordinator could be a realistic starting point, supported by volunteer peer supporters across departments. She gave an example of external training costs from prior work: bringing in a multi‑day external trainer for 25 participants cost roughly $30,000 for five days. Committee members said that having a paid coordinator would improve retention and capacity to support the roughly 800 county employees, while also pointing to supervisor training and visible leadership support as critical to destigmatize use of services.

Lawmaker members pressed for budgetary detail and a clear program vision before taking the position through the budget process. The committee discussed next steps and timeline: finalize a draft resolution through WDIC in late June, submit to Budget, Capital and Personnel (BCP) for the July 13 meeting and, if approved, place on the full Legislature agenda (noted dates: BCP July 13; full Legislature July 21). Several members volunteered to assist drafting the resolution and to gather cost benchmarks for external training versus in‑house options.

Committee members also highlighted existing department efforts: DOER and Probation have peer or group support offerings, DSS runs voluntary vicarious‑trauma groups, and the Health Department provides clinic supports. Members noted local partners (988 training, NAMI Finger Lakes) are offering free or low‑cost trainings that the county can leverage.

The committee did not take a formal vote on the staffing proposal at the meeting; members agreed to continue drafting a resolution and to collect cost estimates and implementation details for review at the June WDIC meeting and ahead of July BCP.