Whether it’s disease, fire, or extreme weather, a sudden catastrophic event can have a devastating toll on farming operations.
And while efforts to rebuild and repair farms tend to take centre stage following a crisis, the mental health aspects of these events are often put on the backburner.
However, the Canadian Centre for Agricultural Wellbeing (CCAW) hopes to change that mindset with its Catastrophic Events Toolkits.
“The agricultural industry does a really good job of showing up and making sure we’re doing what needs to be done to make sure a farm can be saved or rebuilt or otherwise intervening in another way that is appropriate,” said Dr. Briana Hagen, CEO and lead scientist at CCAW.
“What we don’t do a great job of is making sure there are mental health supports in place or intervention or preventative services that can be included in that response.”
The toolkits contain insights and resources for those supporting farmers and farm families during an agricultural crisis, and were developed from a research study asking farmers what they need in a crisis.
The intention of the toolkits, says Hagen, is to bridge the mental health gap in emergency preparedness for catastrophic events across the agricultural industry.
“We know that farmers are experiencing poor mental health outcomes compared to the general population in Canada.
“We know that agriculture has unique stressors and some of those stressors are around these catastrophic events, including extreme weather events that are happening more frequently, that can really ratchet up stress on a farm and for a farm family,” said Hagen, adding that CCAW also recently launched the National Farmer Wellness Network crisis line to provide farmers with access to farm-tailored mental health support.
“There is always going to be something causing stress and challenges, so making sure we have these types of supports in place for farmers to seek appropriate care is key.”
In addition to a core component that outlines how to support farmers during an agricultural crisis, a unique aspect of the toolkits is information for crisis liaisons to know more about specific farming events. The toolkits, which are geared towards groups creating emergency preparedness programs or plans, currently highlight avian influenza, African swine fever, and porcine epidemic diarrhea. The toolkits are described as living templates that will evolve to include other agricultural threats and crises.
“The beauty of crisis liaison toolkit is that a group, whether it’s a commodity group or a community group, can identify who the best-suited person for that role might be in that area or in that crisis, and this type of training could be utilized to make sure that person is ready,” said Hagen.
“Who a crisis liaison is depends on who might be the right person in that moment. I think that’s one of the really great things about this approach because it can evolve based on who is available and what farmers need in that moment.”
The background information for crisis liaisons and other individuals or groups could make a tremendous difference in supporting farmers’ mental health during a crisis.
As Hagen explains, for farmers to get on board with receiving support, they want the people helping them to understand the unique traits of agriculture.
“That is something that came through in our previous research time and time again; that having someone who has a baseline knowledge of agriculture is key in order to have farm credibility and for a farmer to trust them in those moments of need. Without that knowledge, it’s harder for them to be able to serve farmers.”
Hagen points out that the crux of ensuring farmers get the support they need when they need it comes down to being proactive as an industry, which is why awareness about emergency preparedness, including mental health, is crucial.
“I do think that there is a strong urgency for emergency preparedness in a lot of commodity groups right now. For example, with African swine fever, we know that there is a lot of preparation for what could happen if it hits. That is where a toolkit like this could be incorporated into an existing emergency preparedness plan and really be helpful,” Hagen says.
“That’s why we’re working with groups to make sure the toolkits can be moulded to fit their commodity or community, which is what is really unique and really important about these kits.”
After years of research on farmers’ mental well-being, Hagen says the overwhelmingly positive response to the toolkits is undoubtedly a testament to the work that has been done to build awareness around mental health and its importance in the agricultural industry. And that’s a trend that Hagen hopes continues.
“What I really hope happens with these toolkits is that mental health doesn’t just become an interventional thought for groups and for farmers. I really hope that by implementing plans and a crisis liaison, that we can have boots on the ground early. So that we aren’t responding to a mental health crisis – we’re preventing one.”
Reprinted with permission from the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association