Dr. John P. Cordle, a human factors engineer at Commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic (COMNAVSURFLANT) who is spearheading the initiative said, “I look at what causes stress in Sailors, what impacts their performance, fatigue, operational tempo, and that’s what got me interested in suicide prevention.”
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The program utilizes fully immersive VR technology, integrating professional actors and artificial intelligence to create dynamic, responsive training environments.
“The VR system responds to the certain actions you take and will respond differently depending on what you choose,” Cordle explained. “At the end, there is a report card that shows how the command responded during the situation.”
One of the key benefits of the program is its simplicity.
“It’s very simple. The training scenarios are pre-loaded onto Oculus headsets,” said Cordle. “It’s just the headset and headphones. It’s an intense experience, much more engaging than just listening to a presentation. Participants actually have to interact with the scenarios.”
The initiative comes at the invitation of MARMC Commanding Officer, Capt. Jay Young and MARMC’s Executive Director, Dawn Dick, to implement the safeTALK program, which teaches the basics of understanding suicide and recognizing warning signs. The acronym “SAFE” stands for “Suicide Alertness for Everyone”, while “TALK” represents the steps to take when recognizing the signs of suicidal ideations: Tell, Ask, Listen and Keepsafe.
Built-in feedback mechanisms help measure the training’s effectiveness.
“There is a feedback form embedded at the end of the training,” Cordle noted. “It records your responses such as ‘What was your level of comfort?’ That gets sent to the command so they know how the individuals feel about the training.”
For those seeking assistance, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides 24/7 support at 1-800-273-TALK.
MARMC, a field activity under Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), provides surface ship maintenance, management and oversight of private sector maintenance and fleet technical assistance to ships in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.
