Press Releases

LOWELL, MA – Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03) and State Representative Colleen Garry (D-Dracut)visited On-Site Academy, a facility in Westminster focused on providing critical mental health services to emergency workers after traumatic experiences. The lawmakers were joined by the family of the late Alan Matthews, a Dracut resident and Nurse Anesthetist who tragically died by suicide last year due to the toll of the pandemic.

“I can’t imagine the pain of families like the Matthews who have lost a loved one to suicide because our mental health response isn’t what it needs to be. No emergency worker should be forced to bear the weight of the stress and trauma of their jobs alone,” said Congresswoman Trahan. “We owe it to CJ, Kerry, and Emily, as well as every other family of emergency workers, to make substantial investments at every level in organizations like On-Site Academy. I’m deeply grateful to Representative Garry for fighting so hard for this investment, and I look forward to working with her, Dr. Duggan, and CJ to secure additional funds to further expand their services.”

“I am very grateful for the bravery of Alan’s family in sharing their story to help prevent other families from going through the tragic loss of a loved one who was a hero in the health field. I am appreciative of the support of my colleagues in the Legislature and the Governor in supporting this ARPA Bill funding,” said State Representative Colleen Garry. “A special thank you to Congresswoman Trahan for her care, concern and kindness shown to the Matthews family! Her understanding of the tremendous need for this program for our health care heroes is so valuable to the continuation of this remarkable program which is literally saving lives with the leadership of Dr. Duggan and the OnSite staff!”

Founded in 1991, On-Site Academy is one of the first solely dedicated to providing critical incident stress management for emergency personnel and veterans. The facility seeks to address the disparate impact that emergency work has on health workers, first responders, and other personnel. Emergency workers face higher rates of heart disease, substance abuse, divorce, depression, and suicide due to the stressful nature of their jobs, which was made worse the coronavirus pandemic.

“The On-Site Academy is honored to ‘serve those who serve.’ Especially during this stressful period, it is crucial to support our first responders, nurses, and law enforcement personnel in staying as healthy as possible both physically and emotionally given the traumas to which they are exposed daily,” said Dr. Hayden Duggan, President and Founder of On-Site Academy. “Nurses have been on the front line shift after shift, day after day often acting in the place of family members who in some cases were not able to even say good-by to their loved ones, rendering the most intensive medical interventions, and being there through recovery, or to hold the hands of their patients till the end. It has taken a tremendous emotional toll. Everything we can do to help them in their own journey to recovery should be done as quickly as possible. We are extremely grateful for this generous grant in support of this cause!”

During the visit, Trahan and Garry were joined by Caroljean “CJ” Matthews, widow of the late Alan Matthews, as well as their daughters, Kerry and Emily. Alan was a Nurse Anesthetist for 30 years, and during the pandemic, he spent most of his time on ICU floors performing intubations on critical COVID-positive patients. Before the pandemic, he was suffering from migraines stemming from a 2014 car accident, but the stress of the job during COVID significantly worsened his pain. In July 2021, Alan went on medical leave to seek help. Two weeks later, he died by suicide. The Matthews family have been strong advocates for mental health services for emergency workers, including those offered at On-Site.

“When people reach out for help, it should not be this difficult or impossible to find,” said CJ Matthews. “I am so very grateful for Colleen Garry, Lori Trahan, and Dr. Duggan and his staff for their dedication, care and commitment in helping first responders. The creation of a medical on-site to help others in the medical profession would continue Alan‘s life work of helping people and could save somebody’s life, preventing their family from going through what we are going through.”

“No child should have to go through the loss of a parent due to work-related stress. With a program specifically for medical professionals, who are truly heroes, hopefully we can help others in my dad‘s memory,” said Kerry Matthews.

During negotiations on Beacon Hill over the Commonwealth’s allocation of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, Garry successfully secured $200,000 to support On-Site Academy. The funds will be used to expand the services offered at the facility so more emergency personnel who are processing traumatic experiences are able to get the help they need. Current services include peer-to-peer counseling, a residential program, the Widows/Widowers In Need of Grief Services (WINGS) program, and non-residential treatment plans for families.

Trahan supported passage of the American Rescue Plan last year. The relief package provided over $4 billion in aid directly to the Commonwealth to be used for specific needs, including expanded mental health services, that have been impacted by the pandemic.

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