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San Antonio chiefs highlight wellness programs, urge hiring more mental‑health clinicians for police and fire
Summary
SAPD and fire leaders described peer support, PRO and clinical services available to first responders and said psychologists and licensed counselors are booked; council members urged filling vacant positions, exploring UTSA partnerships and considering two additional LPCs to expand counseling capacity.
Police and fire leadership told the Public Safety Committee they have layered wellness programs — peer support, chaplaincy, family assistance, the Performance Recovery Optimization (PRO) program, critical-incident intervention and clinician referrals — but they singled out a staffing gap in clinician capacity.
Chief McManus and the fire department’s wellness lead described services available to sworn staff and families, including peer volunteers, chaplaincy and psychological services that support return‑to‑duty assessments and crisis intervention. “We offer comprehensive support beyond traditional models,” McManus said.
Presenters said utilization is high and that existing psychologists are heavily booked. A speaker representing psychological services said the unit has three full‑time psychologists supporting SAPD work and that adding two licensed professional counselors (LPCs) focused on counseling would “help us out tremendously.” Committee members repeatedly urged the city to prioritize filling vacant psychologist positions and to explore pipelines, internships and partnerships with UT San Antonio and regional providers.
The fire department reported two authorized psychologist positions, one of which is vacant; in the interim, the department is using a uniformed firefighter with chemical‑dependency credentials to maintain continuity of services. Fire leadership stressed confidentiality and voluntary access and noted proactive outreach, station‑level communications and annual behavioral health screenings.
Council members framed filling clinical vacancies as a retention and operational priority: more accessible counseling, reduced wait times and culturally competent clinicians (with experience working with public‑safety personnel) were cited as immediate needs. Council members suggested mid‑year budget adjustments, recruiting from peer cities, and exploring second‑career hires (for example, veterans) as possible solutions.
Next steps: chiefs agreed to continue recruitment and to pursue partnerships (including UTSA) and other pipelines for clinicians; council members signaled support for funding and operational follow‑up.
