Mental health implications of fire service membership.

Abstract

The primary goal of the current study was to add to the literature regarding mental health implications of fire service membership. Paid-professional firefighters (n = 94) were compared with workers from non-emergency-service occupations (n = 91) with respect to posttraumatic symptomatology as well as other symptoms of mental illness. The results suggested that firefighters self-reported greater posttraumatic symptomatology than comparison participants as measured by the Impact of Events Scale—Revised. In addition, the firefighters reported more distress on several subscales of the Symptom Checklist 90—Revised. Specifically, firefighters scored higher than the non-emergency-service participants on self-reported interpersonal sensitivity, anxiety, hostility, and psychoticism. Contrary to the original hypotheses, no links were evident between years of service and posttraumatic/mental health symptoms. Overall, this project suggests that firefighters are at substantially higher risk for traumatic stress symptoms as compared with other workers who do not work within the emergency services. In addition, it is suggested that previous reports of additional mental health symptoms experienced by firefighters may actually be more consistent with secondary reports of posttraumatic symptomatology. A secondary goal of this study was to provide exploratory data regarding potential links between firefighters’ mental health and self-reported personality characteristics. These data suggest that neuroticism may play a special role in the prediction of posttraumatic symptomatology for firefighters.

An investigation of the rescue personality in firefighter recruits.

“…The findings o f the current study are also contrary to the previously mentioned effect observed in career firefighters who reported greater overall PTSD symptomatology and other mental health issues such as interpersonal sensitivity, anxiety, hostility, and psychoticism (Wagner et al, 2010). One possible explanation for this discrepancy is that working in the firefighting service exposes healthy new recruits to critical incidences and other events that compromise their mental wellbeing.…”

“…It has previously been reported that career firefighters, as compared to community controls, are more likely to report greater posttraumatic stress symptomatology and other mental health issues, such as hostility, anxiety, interpersonal sensitivity, and psychoticism (Wagner, McFee, & Martin, 2010). Based on these findings, the current study hypothesised that firefighter recruits would report higher levels o f posttraumatic stress symptomatology and other mental health issues than comparable controls.…”

“…However, years o f firefighting experience alone are not significantly related to PTSD symptomatology or any other mental health measure reported in the literature (depression, somatization, obsessivecompulsive disorder, interpersonal sensitivity, anxiety, hostility, phobic anxiety, paranoia, psychoticism, or alexithymia) (Chamberlin & Green, 2010;Heinrichs et al, 2005;Wagner et al, 2010). Interestingly, once baseline self-efficacy and hostility scores are accounted for, a doseresponse relationship does become more apparent, with those firefighters who report greater hostility and lower self-efficacy during recruitment also reporting increasing levels o f PTSD symptomatology, depression, and anxiety throughout their first year working in the profession.…”

Temperamental correlates of trauma symptoms in firemen, policemen and soldiers

“…It is also known that various psychological and physical factors play a significant role in the aetiology of trauma-related symptoms in these 3 occupational groups. These factors are, for example, burns and physical injuries, fire incidents with multiple deaths, motor vehicle accidents involving multiple deaths, suicides and others that may concern firemen and policemen [2,3]. On the other hand, combat experiences, number of times in combat, amputations, traumatic brain injuries, blast-related traumatic brain injuries and others are identified as factors affecting the symptoms of Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Łódź, Poland IJOMEH 2014;27(4) 600 Emotional reactivity shows significant phenotypic and genetic links to neuroticism, while BR, EN and AC are phenotypically and genetically correlated with extraversion, as described in the 5-factor theory [17,18].…”

The Relationship between War Trauma, Secondary Traumatic Stress, and Anxiety Among Health Professionals Working at Emergency Departments in Gaza-Strip

“…Heinrichs et al assessed 43 firefighters during training and at six, nine, 12, and 24 months after beginning the job [26]. Results demonstrated increased levels of PTSD, depression, anxiety, general psychological morbidity, and alexithymia, but only for the participants with higher levels of hostility and lower levels of self-efficacy at baseline Wagner et al found that professional firefighters had higher levels of interpersonal sensitivity, anxiety, hostility, and psychoticism compared to a matched group of non-emergency service workers [27]. Our results of anxiety rate was higher that other studies of individual relief workers, with rates ranging from 8% to 20% for depression and 8% to 29% for anxiety [28][29][30].…”