Jeonnam Fire Department, Nationwide First to Operate 'Contactless Healing Program'

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Jeonnam Fire Department held a time to heal the minds of its fire officers who have been unable to take care of their own mental and physical health while protecting the safety and lives of the residents.

In particular, employees who have been extremely busy on the front lines due to COVID-19 had an opportunity to reflect on themselves once again, and it was regarded as a time to reaffirm their determination to provide higher quality fire services to the residents.

Jeonnam Fire Headquarters (Chief Ma Jaeyoon) announced that it conducted the nation's first untact (non-face-to-face) online healing program for employees in the province on the 15th and 17th.

The healing program has been operated annually to help the mental health of employees exposed to PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) from horrific field activities and to relieve mental and physical fatigue.

This year, due to the impact of COVID-19, all group trainings were postponed or canceled, so the program was conducted online in a non-face-to-face manner for the first time in the nation.

According to last year's mental health survey of fire officers in the province, many employees reported sleep disorders (19.7%), PTSD (4.8%), and depression (3.6%), indicating a need for mental health management.

The participants of this healing program were 40 employees selected who needed mental health care, including paramedics dispatched to Daegu to prevent the spread of COVID-19, employees who suffered assault during duty, and those complaining of mental and physical fatigue due to excessive dispatches.

Under the theme of "A special 5 hours that changes the mind and thoughts," the program was conducted twice, including warm-up healing exercises, learning meditation in daily life, reflecting on one's mind, and sharing impressions.

At a time when external activities were restricted due to the heavy workload caused by the resurgence of COVID-19 and social distancing, meditation provided an opportunity to reflect on oneself and communicate with colleagues, receiving positive responses from participants.

Ma Jaeyoon, Chief of Jeonnam Fire Headquarters, said, "Based on the analysis of the effects of this untact healing program, if the response is good, we plan to continue conducting it," and added, "We will help relieve employees' stress to make the workplace healthy and vibrant."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.