Peers As Law Enforcement Support (PALS)

Presented under the topic, First Responder Stress and Mental Health chaired by V. B. Van Hasselt

Critical incident stress debriefing: What is the state of the science?

https://nsuworks.nova.edu/cps_facbooks/1134/thumbnail.jp

Firefighter Suicide: the Need to Examine Cultural Change

It is well documented that first responders face profound physical and psychological demands on the job from multiple car pile-ups to child drownings. The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) reported that fire departments are four times more likely within a given year to experience a suicide than a “traditional” line-of-duty death. Research suggests that firefighters are not immune to the excessive stressful nature of their careers, making mental health a critical issue of firefighter wellness and safety. Firefighter culture demands members be mentally tough as well as physically strong. Silence regardi..

Assessment of Stress and Resiliency in Emergency Dispatchers

Although they are technically the first responders on most critical incidents, emergency dispatchers have received a modicum of attention from researchers and clinicians. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate job-related stress, psychological distress, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), stress resiliency, and posttraumatic growth in this high-risk group. These areas were evaluated via an assessment battery administered to 90 emergency dispatchers working in a law enforcement agency. Results showed that dispatchers experienced an average amount of occupational stress, with 24% of the current sample reporting significant job stress. Between 13.34 and 15.56% reported symptoms consistent with a PTSD diagnosis, and 16.67% indicated sub-threshold PTSD symptomatology. The findings revealed that, overall, dispatchers experience occupational stress, psychological distress, and sub-threshold PTSD at similar or higher rates compared to police officers. Further, dispatchers reported posttraumatic growth at an average rate, also similar to that reported by police officers. Clinical implications of the results are discussed. Suggestions for directions that future research might take are offered

Behavioral Health Training for Fire Rescue Personnel - Firefighter Health

First responders are considered a high-risk occupational group in that they experience a wide variety of physical and mental health-related conditions as a result of their occupational duties.1 Firefighters are exposed to unique stressors resulting from their diverse, dangerous, and potentially traumatic job-related responsibilities.2-3 Overall, firefighters experience more job stress than workers in nonemergency occupations.4-5 The specific job-related stressors reported by firefighters include shift work, managerial or organizational problems, inadequate equipment and insufficient resources,6..