Taking Training to the Next Level
Our jobs are about being in inmates’ business and observing them. These skills that were taught to us through CCA training probably saved a man’s life.
Back in 2008 I met my new neighbor, who had recently been divorced and had been diagnosed with some form of cancer that required surgery. He had filed bankruptcy, lost his bike and eventually his house will foreclose. In November of 2009 he underwent surgery to remove part of his lung and a tumor. This caused him to miss work which resulted in him receiving a certified letter informing him that he had lost his job. He started to sell his belongings for way below worth and not really caring about anything.
Over the past couple of months I have watched him go from a solid, vibrant man to an extremely skinny man who was not even strong enough to open his screen door. Three weeks ago the water was shut off to his house and the electricity was not far behind. He would not accept any form of help from anyone. Recently I heard another neighbor talking about how my ill neighbor had given them a new lawn mower and weed eating equipment for really cheap. This struck an alarm with me. My neighbor was the type of person who mowed daily and had lawn care people come weekly. I started noticing that he never left his house and his truck sat in the same spot for weeks.
We started calling him and he would not answer the phone and we would go to his house and he would not answer the door but only yell to go away. He even said to us if anything ever happened to him that we should know where his spare key was.
Last night a friend of mine went to his house to check on him and he did not respond. We banged on his door. It was dark and we could not see in. We called the police to do a wellness check on him. When they arrived my neighbor did eventually let them in and after questioning and a medic check they did take him to the hospital.
I do feel that our CCA training helped in getting awareness to my neighbor. What I did notice is that people thought he was giving his stuff away for money or he just was too proud to ask for help. If you asked him if you could help, he would reply, “Shoot me.” I read the suicide prevention card on my name badge and checked every indicator off with my neighbor then took action. The officer said that we probably just saved his life. He almost fell out when they tried to put him on the stretcher.
What we are trained to do is to be in inmates’ business and learn their habits to ensure safety to themselves and us. Noticing these changes and taking what I learned in training class saved a man’s life.
C/O Jamiel Appleget