MdE, Inc. News

The Department of Justice defines human trafficking as “a crime that involves exploiting a person for labor, services, or commercial sex” and is commonly referred to as “modern slavery”. Many think of human trafficking as transnational, when these heinous crimes are more often being committed right here in the United States. These horrendous acts continue to be unquestionably lucrative and are growing rapidly. In 2007, Senate named January 11th National Human Trafficking Awareness Day to assist in the growing need for these crimes to be truly understood by the general public. Know the signs As the anti-trafficking movement continues to grow in understanding this multiplex crime, the community has come to recognize that one of the most important ways to be aware of human trafficking is knowing the signs of someone who may be trafficked. A victim of human trafficking may be someone who: Is constantly being monitored by another […]

A corrections officer is a first responder occupation in every sense of the words. It’s a job that is characterized by the stigma of low status, high stress, and burnout. With high rates of chronic job-related stress, it’s easy to see how corrections officers can feel as trapped as the prisoners they guard. However, when the job is right, a healthy career in corrections is possible when you make tackling stress a priority. Effects of Stress on First Responders Correctional officers are daily subject to verbal abuse and life-threatening physical assaults. Inmates use manipulation and intimidation tactics to commit crimes inside the facility or to make prison life tolerable.  Rotating and overtime shifts combine with understaffing and supervisor demands to create excessive amounts of fatigue, irritability, and burnout.  It’s a career that stresses multiple bodily systems that lead to major health issues including heart attack, high blood pressure, ulcers, and […]

Firefighting has always been an occupation fit only for the brave.  In the firefighting community in America today, we face unprecedented new challenges.  There is no escaping the reality that the fire situation is getting worse, particularly for firefighters on the ground. Firefighters are increasingly being asked to cover more areas of expertise in more complex fire environments.  Many fire departments are now required to cover Advanced Life Support incidents if they want to have any chance of competing with private ambulance companies.  Although firefighter positions continue to grow in the structure fire community, the situation in wildland firefighting is dire. The majority of the elite, Type 1 wildland firefighters work for a Federal agency – mostly the Park Service, Forest Service, or Bureau of Land Management. Some other crews work for various state agencies, or for smaller agencies such as Fish and Wildlife.  In an environment where the Federal […]

Firefighters serve an entire career of being on-call. Nearly every day, they are out and about, working within their communities. Through hosting kindergarten classroom tours, blaring fire engine sirens in the parades, and hosting community barbecues and firefighter balls, they’ve gotten acquainted with the men and women who govern the town and own businesses. The news reporters have written about their heroism in the local papers many times. Throughout their careers, the community becomes a major part of their lives—one that they are very proud to be a part of. For all firefighters, the day comes when it’s time to retire. Because their communities are such a large part of their lives, moving into retirement is often a bigger adjustment than it is in other professions. It’s also a bigger adjustment than most firefighters thought it would be. Because of the exposure to hazardous materials, firefighters have a shorter life expectancy […]