A systematic review of mental health symptoms in police officers following extreme traumatic exposures

Regehr, Cheryl; Carey, Mary G.; Wagner, Shannon L.; Alden, Lynn E.; Buys, Nicholas J.; Corneil, Wayne; Fyfe, Trina; Matthews, Lynda R.; Randall, Christine; White, Marc; Fraess‐Phillips, Alex; Krutop, Elyssa; White, Nicole; Fleischmann, Matthew H.

doi:10.1080/15614263.2019.1689129

Cited by 55 publications

(60 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“… Osofsky et al [ 34 ] Hurricane Finds that first responders had significant levels of PTSD, depression, alcohol use and partner conflict in the aftermath of a disaster and recommends providing not just mental health services for first responders but also designing adequate plans before disasters strike. Regehr et al [ 35 ] Multiple Presents a review of the literature on mental health symptoms in police officers in the aftermath of their exposure to traumatic events and finds that other rescue workers had higher levels of PTSD than police officers, perhaps due to their training. Smith et al [ 36 ] Hurricane Studies the effects of critical incident stress debriefings in a police department in South Carolina and finds these to help alleviate symptoms of PTSD among police officers.…”

Section: Psychological Health and Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…From our final sample, 24 studies discussed how during disasters and emergencies, and in their aftermath, police officers, and other first responders, are at high risk for developing psychological problems, such as symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) [ 24 , 28 , 31 , 32 , 41 ], acute stress disorder [ 35 ], as well as psychological distress [ 27 ], trauma [ 29 ], anxiety and depression [ 31 , 41 ], fear and substance abuse [ 22 , 25 , 28 , 34 ].…”

Section: Psychological Health and Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is understandable given that, on average, ambulance personnel respond to crises more frequently than police officers. However, the literature suggests that police officers' resistance to PTSD can also be attributed to the selection criteria applied by law enforcement agencies, the screening processes that police officers are subject to, and the training they receive (especially for handling firearms), as well as the notion of ‘brotherhood’ within police organisation, and their ‘personality hardness’ [ 20 , 24 , 32 , 35 , 41 ]. Collectively, these are some of factors that enable resiliency in serving police officers during a crisis.…”

Section: Psychological Health and Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Policing in pandemics: A systematic review and best practices for police response to COVID-19

Laufs

Waseem

2020

International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction

130

144

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The COVID-19 pandemic has created a range of unforeseen and unprecedented challenges for police departments worldwide. In light of these challenges, the goal of this review is to understand the potential short- and long-term effects of disasters and public health emergencies on policing organisations and officers. A total of 72 studies were eligible for inclusion, based on their focus on policing and police work during and in the aftermath of natural disasters and public health emergencies. Through an extensive review, we compile and analyse the most common issues and best practices identified in the literature, and discuss ‘what works’ in the context of policing such emergencies. The literature reveals four categories of issues predominantly raised in this context, namely police-community relations, the mental health and wellbeing of officers, intra-organisational challenges, as well as inter-agency collaboration and cooperation. Based on our review and analysis, we offer a list of recommendations relevant for policing the current COVID-19 outbreak. The findings of this review have immediate implications for policing during COVID-19 but also cover long-term effects, providing valuable recommendations for after the crises has passed.

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Section: Psychological Health and Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Psychological Health and Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Psychological Health and Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Policing in pandemics: A systematic review and best practices for police response to COVID-19

Laufs

Waseem

2020

International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction

130

144

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…For example, Berger et al 10 reported in a previous systematic review of PTSD in first responders that disaster‐exposed police samples demonstrated, on average, an overall rate of PTSD of 4.7%, compared to rates of 7.3% and 14.6% for firefighters and ambulance personnel, respectively. Similarly, Regehr et al 11 have reported in systematic review that the prevalence of PTSD in disaster‐exposed police is lower compared to both disaster‐exposed civilians as well as other first responder groups, with estimates of PTSD prevalence ranging from 0.4% to 12.9% across 17 studies. However, these disaster‐focused studies examine the mental health sequelae of specific large‐scale events, and do not explore the potential occupational and mental health burden of routine policework, which is itself associated with high rates of CI exposure 7 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 91%

Systematic review of posttraumatic stress disorder in police officers following routine work‐related critical incident exposure

Wagner

White

Fyfe

et al. 2020

American J Industrial Med

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Background: The prevalence of PTSD in police officers has been the subject of a large and highly variable empirical literature. The present systematic review evaluates the extant literature on PTSD in police officers using an international dataset. Methods:We employed best-evidence narrative synthesis to evaluate whether PTSD prevalence in police is elevated in comparison to the general population of Canada (8%), which itself has a higher lifetime PTSD prevalence than many other regions and thus serves as a conservative standard of comparison.Results: PTSD prevalence in police varied considerably across studies from 0% -44% (M = 14.87%, Median = 9.2%). Despite this variability, strong evidence exists to suggest PTSD prevalence is elevated in police officers. Examination of possible sources of variability in prevalence outcomes highlighted substantial variability in outcomes due to the selection of measurement tool for assessing PTSD (e.g., DSM vs. IES). Examination of commonly-assessed predictive factors for PTSD risk across the literature showed that individual-difference factors (e.g., age, years of service) bear weak-to-nonexistent relationships with PTSD risk, while incidentspecific factors (e.g., severity of exposure) are more strongly and consistently associated with PTSD prevalence. Organizational factors (e.g., low support from supervisor) are at present understudied but important possible contributors to PTSD risk. Conclusions: PTSD prevalence is elevated in police officers and appears most strongly related to workplace exposure. Measurement variability remains a critical source of inconsistencies across the literature with drastic implications for accurate detection of officers in need of mental health intervention. K E Y W O R D S epidemiology, occupational exposure, police personnel, posttraumatic stress disorder, trauma Institution at which the work was performed: University of Northern British Columbia

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“…Traumatic events cause the most psychological damage when they occur without warning in situations both emotionally challenging and difficult to control ( Paton and Violanti, 1996 ). In some organizations, including police ( Regehr et al, 2019 ), ambulance ( Petrie et al, 2017 ), fire and rescue ( Lee et al, 2017 ), and health professionals ( Somville et al, 2016 ), traumatic events are routine experiences for workers due to direct and indirect exposures ( MacEachern et al, 2011 ; Skogstad et al, 2013 ). Following traumatic exposure, many workers experience upset and distress that may reduce their productivity, cause absence, and increase accidents and errors ( McNally et al, 2003 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early Post-trauma Interventions in Organizations: A Scoping Review

et al. 2020

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Background In some organizations, traumatic events via direct or indirect exposure are routine experiences. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence reviews (2005; 2018) of post-traumatic stress disorder management in primary and secondary care did not address early interventions for trauma within emergency response organizations. Aims This scoping review was designed to identify research which evaluates the use of early interventions in emergency and other high-risk organizations following exposure to primary or secondary trauma and to report on the effectiveness of the early intervention models in common use. Methods A scoping review was conducted to examine early interventions for workers exposed to trauma, including emergency response, military, and humanitarian aid. Relevant data were extracted from the included studies and the outcomes were assessed using meta-ethnography. Results Fifty studies of mixed quality met the inclusion criteria for this review. A synthesis of study outcomes found that early interventions help emergency responders to manage post-incident trauma when they are delivered in a manner that (a) respects distinct organizational culture, (b) is supported by organizations and senior management, and (c) harnesses existing social cohesion and peer support systems within teams. Conclusion This review demonstrates that early interventions support emergency responders following exposure to trauma when these are tailored to the needs of the population, are supported by the host organization, and harness existing social cohesion and peer support processes within a team or unit. A number of recommendations for the delivery and evaluation of early interventions for psychological trauma in emergency response organizations were made.

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A systematic review of mental health symptoms in police officers following extreme traumatic exposures

Cited by 55 publications

References 49 publications

Policing in pandemics: A systematic review and best practices for police response to COVID-19

Policing in pandemics: A systematic review and best practices for police response to COVID-19

Systematic review of posttraumatic stress disorder in police officers following routine work‐related critical incident exposure

Early Post-trauma Interventions in Organizations: A Scoping Review

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