John McGarvey

Advisory Board Member

John is a Senior Fire Fighter and Rescue Operator with Fire & Rescue New South Wales (FRNSW) and a senior member of the Critical Incident Peer Support Team. John works extensively with firefighters and their families to provide education, support and advice on mental health problems, including the stress associated with exposure to traumatic events.

The co-author of Fire & Rescue’s Peer Support Officer education session on mental health and critical incident stress, John regularly travels across NSW to present this information and engage with firefighters and their families.

A Mental Health First Aid instructor, John delivers training to first responders across the emergency service sector and has also worked with military veterans and other community groups facilitating Mental Health Fist Aid.

After becoming involved with Mindarma in 2016, John facilitated some of the first information sessions associated with the randomised control trial (RCT) of the original pilot program (RAW) at FRNSW and continues to be an advocate for the program. Passionate about first responder mental health, John is always looking for evidence-based programs to promote and implement.

In 2019 John was nominated as a finalist in the Rotary NSW Emergency Services Community Awards for his work in Mental Health & the Peer Support Arena.

Away from work, John is an avid bushwalker and loves nothing more than being out in nature – whether it be a dry and rocky outback track or a wind-swept, snow-covered mountain. He is energised by the remoteness and beauty, but is also partial to the odd 5-star food and wine adventure to recover from his wilderness experiences.