When I’m considered their Chaplain and there’s ownership over me, I’ve been receiving more direct calls. Generally, in the previous model, if there’s an emergency or crisis, Leadership or the Squadrons will call the Command Post and the Command Post would then try to find who the duty Chaplain is and then connect us to that particular Squadron and I might not even be assigned to that Squadron. But because I’m the duty Chaplain, I’ll be responding to that call. But now being embedded, First Sergeants, any leaders, I even had a Flight Chief today contact me directly to see an Airman, so that really drastically reduced the time to deliver care for the Airman.
– Capt Charles Kim, True North Chaplain, Whiteman AFB
It’s not going to mental health or family advocacy that hurts your career, it’s the actions you took before then. But referring yourself and wanting to get better doesn’t hurt your career, it makes you a better person. So I think having more people out there and more people able to spread that word, I think it helps significantly. And I think people talk to the social worker a lot more and to the Chaplain a lot more knowing that they’re closer.
– SMSgt James Gray, 509 Maintenance Squadron, Whiteman AFB