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By Allison G. S. Knox
Contributor, EDM Digest

It has been widely argued recently that [link url=”http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/issues/state-mental-health-america” title=”mental healthcare in the United States needs serious attention and changes”] to make the system more accessible and to give patients the appropriate care that they need.  [link url=”http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-ptsd-report-20140621-story.html” title=”The Department of Veteran Affairs has been largely scrutinized the last few years”] for their handling of war veterans and their mental health needs.  In recent years, several studies have confirmed a [link url=”https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4129899/” title=”high prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder”] among Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel. Considering the [link url=”https://amuedge.com/beginning-the-conversation-to-prevent-ems-budget-cuts/” title=”budget cuts surrounding Emergency Medical Services”] and the numerous [link url=”https://amuedge.com/low-wages-volunteerism-and-budget-cuts/” title=”volunteers that staff EMS agencies”], these statistics are alarming and bring forth the notion that local governments should be doing much more for emergency personnel when it comes to mental health care. Not doing more by offering counseling services to all public safety personnel is simply negligent on behalf of the local government.

Military and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

[link url=”https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/releases/why-some-soldiers-develop-ptsd-while-others-dont.html” title=”Some psychology experts”] say that some individuals in the military will develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder because they have been exposed to highly stressful situations where they thought they may not survive in an instance. They also argue that not all military personnel will develop PTSD because some will need to have had certain per-war vulnerabilities that contribute to the overall development of the syndrome. This could be applied to Emergency Medical Services and other roles in public safety.

EMS: Daily and Weekly Stressful Situations

For Emergency Medical Services, stressful situations can happen daily. For one, life-threatening circumstances happen so often that depending on where an EMT is working, such circumstances can be a weekly or even daily event – and for those that are career EMTs, they can sustain decades of traumatic circumstances making Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder relatively more prevalent.

PTSD Awareness Gaining Momentum in the EMS Community

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder is gaining and understanding in the EMS community as more and more awareness is made, and studies are conducted to show just how prevalent it is. One of the most difficult factors, however, will come from local government agencies figuring out how to afford effective treatment and to effectively budget for it. Traditionally, Emergency Medical Services has not been an area that is well-funded, potentially making it even more difficult to effectively treat public safety employees suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. This combined with the healthcare system and what people can afford to pay for healthcare needs makes the conundrum for PTSD treatment in EMS even more complicated.

Local Governments and Budgeting for PTSD Treatment

Municipalities need to carefully consider how they can help their public safety employees, (both paid and volunteer) with treatment for PTSD. Doing so will greatly help to aid the EMS community as these individuals will be much more capable to effectively handle 911 emergencies. Ultimately, public safety employees should be treated with the same respect as veterans returning from war because they are working traumatic emergencies that could have devastating psychological consequences. Without working to include the appropriate counseling measures for these employees, local governments may be negligent in how they’re providing resources to their public safety employees when 911 emergencies are known to be traumatic and potentially dangerous.

By Jinnie Chua

If left unaddressed, stress can have serious mental health consequences on police officers. This new study sheds light on what officers who have demonstrated resilience throughout their careers are doing to successfully manage stress from the job.