The American Board of First Responder Behavioral Healthcare (FRBH) is an independent national standards-setting and accreditation body for responder behavioral health systems across public safety.

FRBH establishes system-level requirements that define how public safety organizations design, govern, and sustain behavioral health protections for trauma-exposed workforces.

Our Purpose

To advance nationally consistent, system-activated behavioral health protection that is embedded into organizational infrastructure—designed to function proactively, consistently, and over the long-term realities of public safety work.

Why FRBH Exist

Trauma exposure in public safety is chronic, cumulative, and inherent to the work.

Historically, many behavioral health approaches applied in public safety were adapted from general population models that rely on self-disclosure, crisis recognition, and individual initiative. These approaches were not designed for high-frequency, high-intensity occupational exposure and have contributed to fragmented systems, delayed intervention, and inconsistent organizational performance.

FRBH exists to address this structural limitation by establishing nationally consistent, system-level standards that define what accountable, culturally competent, and durable responder behavioral health systems must include across the full career span.

Our Core Principle

“Access to behavioral health support should be system-activated, not dependent on individual self-disclosure.”

Authority & Scope

FRBH’s authority is limited to the following functions:

• Development and maintenance of national standards for responder behavioral health systems

• Accreditation of organizational behavioral health systems against published standards

• Public-interest guidance related to system-level behavioral health infrastructure in public safety

FRBH standards apply to organizational systems and governance structures.
They do not regulate individual clinicians, clinical practice, or treatment decisions.

FRBH does not provide:

• clinical services

• training or consulting

• implementation or accreditation preparation services

FRBH accreditation is voluntary, independent, and non-governmental, and does not replace statutory, regulatory, labor, or licensure requirements.

What FRBH Does

• Standards Development
  Defines national, system-level standards for responder behavioral health systems.
  → View the National Standard

• Accreditation
  Accredits public safety organizations whose systems demonstrate conformance with the FRBH National Standard.
  → Explore Accreditation

• Standards & Policy Alignment
  Aligns standards with existing evidence, operational realities, and public-sector guidance to support consistent system expectations nationwide.
  → Reference Materials

• Access Fund
  Supports broader participation in accreditation by addressing financial barriers to national standards adoption for eligible agencies.
  → FRBH Access Fund

Governance & Independence

FRBH operates under independent governance with fiduciary oversight by a national Board of Directors. Formal conflict-of-interest safeguards, standing committees, and transparent review processes ensure accreditation determinations remain objective, consistent, and free from commercial influence.

→ View Governance & Leadership

Standards Evolution

FRBH standards are maintained and updated through a formal, scheduled review process informed by public safety operational realities and existing evidence. This process supports consistency, durability, and relevance over time.

Founding Context

FRBH was established in response to a persistent national gap in how responder behavioral health systems have been structured across public safety.

Through service in uniform and later in senior behavioral health leadership roles, Dr. Kalim Wigfall, DBH, observed that many well-intentioned approaches failed to account for the cumulative and unavoidable nature of trauma exposure in responder work. Systems were often reactive, fragmented, and dependent on individual disclosure.

FRBH was created to establish a different approach—one that defines responder behavioral health as an organizational responsibility, supported by national standards, accountability, and continuous system readiness.

This founding perspective informed the early development of the FRBH National Standard but does not influence accreditation decisions, which are governed independently.