[Alberta] First responders’ mental health grants (Deadline May 27, 2024)

Apply for funding to provide or improve services for first responders living with or at risk for post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSI).

Important dates

May 27, 2024 – Deadline for 2024-25 grant applications

Early 2025 – Successful applicants notified

Overview

Alberta’s firefighters, police officers, paramedics, sheriffs, corrections officers and emergency workers often deal with stressful, dangerous and traumatic situations. This stress has a negative impact on first responders and emergency workers. They experience post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSI) at significantly higher rates than the general population.

For this program’s purposes, “emergency workers” are those who encounter serious, unexpected and often dangerous situations requiring immediate action as part of their jobs.

The Supporting Psychological Health in First Responders (SPHIFR) grant program has 2 separate funding streams:

• Stream 1 (Services) provides funding for non-profit organizations that provide services to first responders and emergency workers living with or at risk for PTSI.
• Stream 2 (Research) provides funding to researchers engaged in applied research that generates evidence on prevention or intervention for first responders and emergency workers living with or at risk for PTSI.

Funding

There is up to $1.5 million available for this grant program in 2024-25.

Eligibility

Grants are available for 2 areas of focus: services, and applied research.

Note: if a service or project is partially funded by another organization, the applicant must indicate what component will be funded by a SPHIFR grant to avoid overlap.

Stream 1: services

The grant for services is available for:

• non-profit or public sector organizations that operate in Alberta
• services or a project dedicated to providing services to Alberta first responders and emergency workers living with or at risk for PTSI

Stream 2: applied research

The applied research grant recipients must meet these requirements:

• Applicant must be affiliated with a Canadian-based organization.
• The research project must generate evidence on prevention or intervention for PTSI in first responders and emergency workers.

More info on Grant