The Covington Police Department is proud to have partnered with NAMI St. Tammany to bring in nationally recognized instructor Joseph Coffey to teach our officers Mental Health First Aid. Much like we train regularly on CPR techniques, I believe it is important to stay on top of the best practices in dealing with those suffering from mental illness.
Joe is from Rhode Island and co-authored the “Mental Health First Aid (USA) Public Safety Module” and presents this course throughout the country for the National Council for Behavioral Health. Joe is a retired captain for the Warwick Police Dept in Rhode Island. Through his testimony at Congressional staff meetings and local legislative forums, Joe was instrumental in making Rhode Island the first state to mandate Mental Health First Aid training for all law enforcement officers.
A special thanks to Nick and Cindy with NAMI St. Tammany for facilitating this first class training for our officers.
– Chief Tim Lentz
