Breaking the Stigma

In this very personal address, Chief Pat Kenny will bring attention to one of the most critical issues facing not only fire service leaders today but any leader of an organization that values their employees, Mental Health.

Armed with a career of advocacy for mental health, Chief Kenny will share his personal story and put forth a call to action to stand up and face these challenges head-on, by examining the myths and stigmas. He will share leadership mental health strategies and tactics and discuss the complications that arise of being a cape wearer whether in your work, family, or personal life.

In this Keynote Chief Kenny will:

• Discuss the components of strong leadership that are necessary to be successful when facing the challenges of Mental Health.
• Motivate the audience to candidly examine their perceptions of mental health.
• Address the questions: How do you build a team necessary to be the best leader you can be beyond simple words?
• Challenge the audience to conduct a self-evaluation about the leadership skills they draw from their “cape” and the drawbacks inherent to wearing that cape.
• Address the positives and negatives of wearing the cape while emphasizing leaders are not superhuman.
• Provide simple action items you can take immediately to improve your organization and leadership abilities.
• Share where to access valuable resources that may be helpful to address these issues for you and your team.

People fear what they don’t understand. Most cultures believe that mental illness is not a disease but rather a character deficiency and thus becomes a direct contributor to reinforcing that belief.

This presentation is delivered from a very personal perspective as a Fire Chief and the turmoil that naturally evolves as a Cape Wearer from trying to maintain the “superhero” image.

Having lost his son to suicide after a life long battle with mental illness, Chief Pat Kenny knows firsthand how being a “cape wearer” and a father struggling to keep his son alive can take a toll.

The presentation is intended to create awareness for attendees to:

1. Self-examine their perception of what mental illness is.
2. As leaders to reflect on whether you are equipped to help a person in a mental health crisis including yourself.
3. Examine what education and resources tools have you proactively put in place to deal with the very real challenge of mental health.

Real-life examples of situations will be provided and then discussed as a group that you may be faced with as the leader. You will gain insight into where your preparation, planning, and follow up may need to be strengthened. The goal is to help you think about mental health differently so it will fuel you on what to include and implement with your plan and where to find resources.