Emergency responders from across the Town of Suffield recently came together for a milestone training initiative designed to strengthen accountability, teamwork, and professional intervention among public safety personnel. The Suffield Volunteer Ambulance Association hosted a three-day HEROES Active Bystander training program, bringing together members of the ambulance association, Suffield Fire Department, Suffield Police Department and representatives from the Town of Suffield Human Resources Department.
The program served as a train-the-trainer kickoff, establishing a local group of instructors who will deliver active bystander training within their respective agencies for years to come.
HEROES (Active Bystander Training for Fire & Rescue) is a nationally recognized program designed specifically for fire and EMS professionals. The training equips responders with practical strategies to recognize potentially harmful situations and intervene appropriately to support safety, professionalism, and organizational integrity. The program was led by Dr. Abigail Tucker, co-founder of HEROES Active Bystander Training, who taught participants intervention techniques used in high-risk professional environments.
“What we observe is that there are a lot of reasons that people are uncomfortable intervening with peers,” Tucker said.
The three-day program began with a leadership-focused training day. Fire and EMS leaders participated in HEROES leadership sessions tailored to fire and rescue agencies, while leaders from the Suffield Police Department attended training aligned with ABLE (Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement), the law enforcement-specific version of the active bystander program.
The following two days focused on the Fire & Rescue HEROES curriculum for designated trainers from the ambulance association and fire department. Participants received detailed instruction on both the program’s concepts and facilitation methods. The training concluded on Sunday with a teach-back session, where newly trained instructors demonstrated their ability to present the curriculum and guide discussions within their organizations.
As a result of the program, the Town of Suffield now has six certified HEROES instructors representing EMS, Fire, and Police who will deliver the Fire & Rescue curriculum locally. In addition, three instructors from the Suffield Police Department are now certified to deliver the ABLE curriculum within their agency. This instructor model ensures the training can be sustained locally for years to come while reinforcing a culture of professionalism, accountability, and peer support across all emergency services.
The training also marks an important milestone for public safety in Connecticut. With the completion of this program, the Suffield Police Department will become the third law enforcement agency in Connecticut to implement the ABLE program. At the same time, the Suffield Volunteer Ambulance Association and the Suffield Fire Department are among the first agencies of their type in Connecticut—and among the early adopters nationally—to implement the HEROES Active Bystander program.
“The goal is to help different departments work together to prevent harmful action or dangerous inaction when responding to emergency calls,” Tucker said. “When our first responders are getting the training, they need and they have each other’s backs in a constructive way, that equals greater public safety.”
The training strengthens communication between agencies that frequently respond together and gives responders the tools to raise concerns when something does not look right. Encouraging that kind of peer communication helps ensure the highest level of safety for both responders and the community they serve.