Client Reviews

I would first like to thank the two instructors that trained us in AVADE , Patrick and Raoul were great. This is the second time I have taken an AVADE course , and this one was the best by far, the instructors were very knowledgeable about the course and they explained in detail what we should and should not be doing. They gave us the tools and the confidence on what to do if attacked and also the steps to doing good report writing. I have already started showing my officers the proper ways to conduct escorts off property and what they should know as far as the rules of law. The best thing that I like about what the instructors did , was that they never made us feel like we could not do the technique that we needed to perform. They went over the proper ways to place restraints on a patient with out hurting the patient. They showed us that no matter who it is we, have to be vigilant at all times. I just enjoyed the class and when you have good instructors it makes a world of difference, much love and respect goes out to both instructors.

I just took the AVADE instructor course with Cosmo.



The 3-days of 8 hour classes felt short as Cosmo kept us entertained, not only with his personality but all the great prepared information. A+ for Cosmo!

We conducted our first AVADE BH course last week with overwhelmingly positive feedback from staff who were in attendance, including our float pool staff, clinical teams, and public safety. The interest and traction that this is gaining across our hospital is amazing. We’ll be putting on two more classes in May for Mental Health Awareness Month and continue to roll it out throughout the year – I guarantee we’ll be filling classes. Thanks for all of your work on this course!

I recently completed the AVADE Advanced Instructor training with Cosmo. The course was amazing but Cosmo made it so much better. It was informative but he made it fun! I actually left tired but a little upset that it was over. I look forward to bringing AVADE back to my hospital and teaching our team what de-escalation is supposed to look like. Thank you Cosmo for your expertise and to David for all his hard work presenting AVADE to us and answering any questions we had.

AVADE Recertification Class

I wanted to take the opportunity to thank Adam Farnsworth (Dartmouth Hitchcock In-house Instructor) for instructing the AVADE training that I attended. I was extremely impressed with his teaching ability. He really had a way to get us involved and to keep us focused. I enjoyed how he gave us scenarios to work with to help us understand tactics and techniques. It is apparent how important his role as an instructor is to him. I was very satisfied with his presentation on AVADE. He spent a lot of energy teaching and demonstrating AVADE material. I recognized his passion and enthusiasm.

I now feel more confident in ways to de-escalate situations. How to use appropriate body language. Methods of defending myself if a situation were to happen.

Thank you for the refreshments offered to the class. Thank you for the comfortable seating and the warm building. Thank you for investing in me. Today was truly a blessing and I'm grateful.

I wanted to share with you an incident that recently happened at the facility where I've worked for the last couple of years. I was an AVADE instructor with another hospital for a while, and then, 2 years ago, I transitioned over to this new drug and alcohol detox facility. I was excited to bring this program here to help keep our staff and clients safe. We are fortunate that the majority of our patients are redirectable. We can use good de-escalation and have a great outcome. Last week, there was an incident involving two different clients that ended up in a fight that escalated extremely fast, and one of the clients ended up putting the other in a rear carotid choke. I heard the commotion through the wall of my office and immediately ran in to assess the situation, yelling for help as they were both on the floor and trying to figure out how I was going to keep myself and the other patient safe. I never panicked; I was calm the whole time and was able to assess the situation appropriately what I ended up doing was getting down to the floor behind the client who had the other in the carotid choke, positioned myself as safely as I could, and used distraction techniques basically I covered his eyes and shouted in his ear to let go, and he immediately did. I was able to keep myself safe when he started swinging back, probably because he was startled. I just wanted to thank you. I've used other techniques, mostly de-escalation and escorting that kind of thing. This was a very serious situation, and I'm just glad that I could handle it appropriately and that everybody ended up being safe.

The class was well organized and it had a good balance of lecture and practical exercises. The instructor, Kelly Boyer, was a great instructor with plenty of experience as an LEO and hospital security officer. He made it fun and he wanted us to all leave there with a better understanding and competence in the AVADE program.

Went into the instructor training with a lack of optimism due to past training experiences. I have to say that Patrick is a very detailed and driven instructor, his knowledge is priceless. We hit him with questions throughout the three days of the training and he had an answer every time. This training will save lives.

Learned amazing techniques to keep my patients, coworkers and myself safe. Recommend wholeheartedly!

35 years of law enforcement experience with a heavy focus on training, and this was some of the best training I have received. Cosmo's knowledge of the material, coupled with his nursing skills, added an extra value to the course with understanding how our bodies and minds work and can be affected due to neurological and physiological issues simply added a new and interesting dynamic to the training. Cosmo was fun, attentive, and passionate about the training. I would highly recommend the AVADE WPV course for ANYONE!