Talking, Listening & Identifying: Spotting a threat and staying safe
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Tragically, as we saw in Louisville this week, mass shootings have become far too frequent.
They have a combined impact on us individually, a sense of despair, futility, and wondering what we can do about it.
Our everyday life has been repeatedly shaken since 9-11, with every new event making "If you see something, say something" more than just a slogan.
"The question is, 'what do you see?'"
That's from Dr. Jack Rozel, a UPMC professor of psychiatry and an adjunct professor of law who specializes in threat assessment and emergency mental health.
"We want to identify people at risk before something dangerous happens," he said.
As the events we have witnessed have told us - we are actually us.
"One of the things we know over and over again, somebody knew in advance," Dr. Rozel said. "They either knew about a direct threat, or they know about something that we call 'leakage' which is where someone else knew that something was about to happen."
The key is not staying quiet, especially if it's someone close to you.
"If they're sharing that they're thinking about hiring other people or hurting themselves, and you aren't confident that it's a joke, you aren't confident that it's sarcasm, then you need to raise your hand, you need to find the right person to hand that information off to," he explained.
If it's a concern at work, Rozel said the HR director, a supervisor, or a designated tip line may be the place to go.
But what if it's a concern at home?
"Wherever you are, you can pick up the phone and dial 988, and just like that, one will reach a first responder like law enforcement, 988 is going to get you to a local crisis center," he said.
That will get you in touch with someone who can direct you to help.
All of this can take a toll on our sense of security and our enjoyment of the breaking of spring has been repeatedly hurt by scenes such as the one we saw play out in Oakland a few weeks ago at Central and Oakland Catholic high schools.
"This has been a hard couple of weeks to be a parent, right?" Dr. Rozel asked.
He said there are questions you can ask your kids and the key is to listen to what they say.
"What do you hear, what did you hear, what do you know about, what are you concerned about?" Those were just a couple of the questions he used as an example and said it's okay to reassure them of their safety at school.
"Right, 98-percent of the firearm homicides of kids happen outside of the schools," he said.
He pointed out that whether it's kids in school or any of us in public it's important to understand the risks and realize that sometimes, the way the news cycle portrays violent events, isn't highly accurate of what's going on in the world.
"Part of it is knowing what to do in an emergency," he said. "You know, a generation ago, we were talking about the Hemlich Manuver and stop, drop, and roll. Now, we've got to think about run, hide, fight, and stopping the bleeding."
Dr. Rozel said the wounds to our sense of security have been opened but they can be managed.
That's where talking and listening come in - reassuring our kids and being aware of things that don't feel right and then making sure we say something when that happens.
