Of all the words one might expect to hear in a sit-down interview with the top brass of a city fire department, “namaste” wouldn’t chart too highly.
But in Worcester, they’re all about it. Mindfulness – a focus on mental health employing breathing, stretching and meditation techniques not unlike yoga – is one of the Worcester Fire Department’s newest and, to them, most exciting initiatives to improve the health and safety of its crew.
In such a high-stress, dangerous and physically-strenuous job, a focus on mental health is as invaluable as it is overlooked. At least that’s how Chief Mike Lavoie sees it.
“The end goal is to keep our firefighters as physically and mentally fit as we can, so they survive their career and then they have a happy healthy retirement. That’s the end goal,” he said.