ECHO Public Safety Personnel (PSP) offers two program cycles with 12 virtual sessions each.
Cycle 1 ran from September 20 to December 6, 2023 on Wednesdays from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m.
Cycle 2 will run from April 10 to June 26, 2024 on Wednesdays from 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. Toronto time.
Learning objectives of ECHO PSP
At the end of this program, participants will be able to:
Objective 1 – Support public safety personnel (PSP) with complex mental health injuries that affect their ability to work
Objective 2 – Identify the unique features of PSP workplace cultures that may influence how PSP experience, report, and seek assistance for mental health concerns
Objective 3 – Communicate and collaborate effectively with workplace parties, insurance and care providers to improve access to and quality of care for PSP
Benefits of participating
- ECHO PSP provides a community of practice for Ontario care providers to gain up-to-date knowledge, skills, resources, and expert advice.
- Participants learn how to identify and support patients/clients with mental health injuries in their recovery and return to work or stay at work.
- Participants build confidence and skills by taking part in case-based discussions, presenting their own cases and hearing presentations on key PSP topics by experts in the field.
- ECHO PSP is free. It is a no-cost way to get expert, specialist advice, reducing patient referrals to specialists in other areas.
- Participants earn CE credits.
- Physicians presenting a case may bill OHIP for case conferences (billing codes K707 or K701). Learn more about presenting a case.
Expectations of participants
Participants register for an entire ECHO PSP cycle (12 sessions). They are expected to:
- attend as many of the sessions as possible
- complete surveys to evaluate each session and the ECHO PSP program
- present a short, de-identified patient/client case, if applicable
- contribute to case discussions as appropriate
How ECHO PSP works
ECHO PSP links care providers with an expert interprofessional “hub” team through weekly videoconference sessions. Each session involves a case presentation and discussion and a didactic presentation on a key PSP topic by experts in the field.
Before a session:
- an agenda is sent to participants with the videoconference link and session materials
- participants prepare their equipment (computer or smart device with a stable internet connection, web cam, and microphone)
During a session:
- a short didactic is presented by a content expert and discussed
- a patient/client case is presented and discussed
- all participants, including the case presenter, receive a summary of recommendations provided by participants and the expert hub
After a session:
- participants can apply their new knowledge in practice
- case presenters and other participants can use recommendations from the session to modify patient/client care
- participants complete a feedback survey
After the program cycle:
- Participants receive a certificate of attendance with CE credits for the sessions attended