FORBES: The stressful lives of first responders (Opinion)
By Marty Forbes
May 13, 2018
If you put on a uniform to serve the public in and around the City of Edmonton this column is for you.
Here’s why.
Our police, firefighters, paramedics, ambulance drivers here and around the country work under some of the most stressful conditions possible. (Note: Humboldt)
This rang true to me listening to Candice Zunti, a former paramedic from AHS, who spoke about her life as part of Crescendo on May 4 at the Winspear Centre. The unique sold-out concert featured classic hits interspersed with messages from people talking about mental health issues.
The first responders in our city do their jobs under horrendous conditions and somehow go home after a tragic shift to tuck their kids into bed as they adapt to the realities of life in the big city.
This past week I spent some time in one of the EPS stations (all good-friendly chat) and listened to some of the challenges our folks in uniform have to deal with on a daily basis.
The police officer wanted to remain anonymous, but stated: “Drinking and driving is a huge problem. It’s very hard to produce evidence for a conviction. There’s a guy here who recalibrates the testing equipment almost daily due to challenges by lawyers. Then there are those people of means or influence that can afford (at great expense) to buy their way out of a DUI charge.”
The new legalized marijuana laws will make their work even more challenging. Measurement will be confusing at best with the mixture of drugs and alcohol.
I stood in front of the city’s most wanted digital video board that scrolls through pictures of criminals. It was very clear to see the effects of addiction on their pockmarked faces. They aren’t kids either, and the officers know most of these folks.
My host pointed out a picture of one suspect. “We arrest her almost every week. She walks into a liquor store and grabs a bottle of booze all the time. We tell the store owner just to let her do it and we arrest her on the way home. It’s a complete waste of our time and court time.”
The motorcycle noise issue is another confusing scenario. Several officers stand and wait for a noisy bike to go by, give the person a ticket, and six months later sit in court to appear for a conviction, often having it thrown out for a technical reason, all the while when cellphone use and texting and driving is rampant and killing people on our streets. (Hey I agree … noise offenders should be fined but don’t tie up resources for long periods of time to do it.)
If you’re waiting for legislation to correct these problems don’t hold your breath. These are human behaviour problems that have to change.
Put … the … damn … smartphone … down!
During my radio career our stations worked closely with the EPS/RCMP and we donated thousands of dollars to the D.A.R.E. program. I watched these people educate young people on addiction awareness. It’s life changing.
I can’t imagine what it is like in today’s complicated world with fentanyl killing people.
When I listened to Candice bravely tell the audience of about 1,500 people her story, what she struggles with trying to have some form of a normal life while dedicating her own life for others, it literally brought a tear to my eyes and I said, “dammit … these people deserve a huge thank you from us because the ‘thoughts and prayers’ usually go to the people and families who are affected by tragedies but we very quickly forget the first responders who deal with the horrific scenes before they get to go home to get a bedtime hug from their loved ones.”
So thank you and … bless every one of you.