Expert Perspective Supporting National Responder Behavioral Health Standards

The American Board of First Responder Behavioral Healthcare (FRBH) Advisory Council is composed of nationally recognized subject-matter experts who provide professional insight and technical perspective to support the development, periodic review, and refinement of FRBH’s national standards for responder behavioral health systems.

Advisory Council members contribute expertise to help ensure FRBH standards remain nationally consistent, jurisdiction-agnostic, and applicable across diverse public safety environments, while grounded in the operational realities of trauma-exposed work.

This advisory structure supports FRBH’s public-interest mission by strengthening nationally consistent standards that promote accountable, system-level behavioral health protection for responders and the organizations that employ them.

Role of the Advisory Council

The Advisory Council serves in a consultative, non-binding capacity in support of FRBH’s standards-setting mission. Members provide expert perspective to inform how national standards reflect real-world public safety operations, workforce protection needs, and system-level behavioral health considerations.

Advisory Council input may inform FRBH standards related to:

• Responder behavioral health system design and operational integration

• Workforce protection across the full career span of trauma-exposed personnel

• Occupational mental health principles and evidence-aligned system practices

• Public safety culture, operations, and organizational realities

Advisory input is used to inform standards development and scheduled review. It does not direct governance, implementation, or accreditation decisions.

Advisory Council Selection Criteria

Advisory Council members are selected based on demonstrated expertise, professional experience, and alignment with FRBH’s national standards mission.

Selection criteria may include:

• Recognized subject-matter expertise relevant to responder behavioral health systems

• Professional experience in public safety, behavioral health systems, occupational health, workforce protection, or related fields

• Experience with system-level policy, standards development, governance, or large-scale organizational frameworks

• Demonstrated understanding of the operational realities of trauma-exposed workforces

• Commitment to public-interest service, ethical practice, and standards integrity

Appointments are made through a formal selection process and are subject to conflict-of-interest disclosure requirements.

Authority & Independence

The FRBH Advisory Council serves in a strictly advisory, non-governing, and non-voting capacity and is structurally distinct from FRBH’s Board of Directors and Executive Leadership.

Advisory Council members do not:

• Hold fiduciary responsibility

• Participate in organizational governance or oversight

• Vote on standards adoption, revision, or enforcement

• Participate in or influence accreditation reviews or determinations

• Engage in appeals, disciplinary actions, or compliance decisions

• Represent FRBH publicly or speak on behalf of FRBH unless expressly authorized

All governance authority, standards adoption, accreditation determinations, enforcement actions, and appeals reside exclusively with the FRBH Board of Directors under established governance and ethical safeguards.

Relationship to Governance and Accreditation

The Advisory Council provides professional perspective that strengthens standards quality while remaining fully independent from governance and accreditation decision-making.

This separation preserves:

• Independence of accreditation determinations

• Integrity of national standards

• Clear accountability and public trust