Education & Resources

Education and resources are available for DPS volunteers and a wide variety of responder groups and their communities.

Education and training

Disaster psychosocial courses

Psychological first aid (virtual)

Psychological First Aid (PFA) training provides first responders and ESS with the knowledge to assist people who have been affected by disasters. PFA is provided within days of a disaster to reduce the initial distress caused by an event and to help those affected by fostering short-term and long-term coping skills.

Next sessions:

November 23, 2024 0900- 1300 (full)

November 30, 2024 0900-1300 (full)

*Our November session is now full. You can still use the button below to register but you will be placed on a waiting list. The next planned session will be in January, 2025.

Wellness Exchange virtual sessions

The Wellness Exchange is a free skill-building curriculum consisting of five modules offered in weekly, virtual sessions that are an hour in length. It provides an opportunity to pause and reﬂect on our well-being, actively identify what we need, and consider strategies that help us enhance our wellbeing.

The Wellness Exchange is available to anyone who is interested in building additional skills around resiliency and coping. It is offered in a virtual group format with a focus on self-reflection and opportunities for interaction. Participants can join as few or as many sessions as they want.

Register here or read more information in this flyer (PDF).

Problem Solving

Tuesday, October 1, 2024: 7-8pm (PST)
Thursday, October 3, 2024: 12-1pm (PST)

Positive Activities

Tuesday, October 8, 2024: 7-8pm (PST)
Thursday, October 10, 2024: 12-1pm (PST)

Managing Reactions

Tuesday, October 15, 2024: 7-8pm (PST)
Thursday, October 17, 2024: 12-1pm (PST)

Helpful Thinking

Tuesday, October 22, 2024: 7-8pm (PST)
Thursday, October 24, 2024: 12-1pm (PST)

Healthy Connections

Tuesday, October 29, 2024: 7-8pm (PST)
Thursday, October 31, 2024: 12-1pm (PST)

Recorded webinars

Introduction to Psychological First Aid (PFA) with Dr. Laurie Pearce. Viewing time: 48 mins. (approx)

Planning resources

Coordination and liaison support

Provincial Psychosocial Services works closely with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness, the regional health authorities as well as non-government organizations to support disaster response and recovery in B.C. If requested, consultation services are available. Please send an email to dpsprogram@phsa.ca for more information.

Disaster recovery toolkit

The Disaster Recovery Toolkit for Community Mental Health and Wellness (Word) is a guide to help communities plan, prepare, and respond to the mental health and wellness impacts of a disaster in their community. It includes best practices with a scalable, flexible, and adaptable approach for communities. If requested, Provincial Psychosocial Services can consult with local governments interested in using the toolkit to help implement it and support other needs.

Share Your Community's Recovery Story!

Provincial Psychosocial Services of Health Emergency Management BC (HEMBC) is looking to showcase and learn from people-focused stories of recovery after emergencies. These can include stories of compassion, creativity and engagement that can be shared to help inspire others. Stories should be submitted by September 30.

View the invitation (Word)

Wellness resource list

Compiled by Provincial Psychosocial Services, the Wellness Resource List (PDF) includes contact information for counselling, wellness and self-care services, and crisis lines.