%0 Journal Article
%T Evaluation of a trauma therapy programme within emergency service organizations
%J Occupational medicine
%D 2019
%A Tehrani, N.
%V ePub
%N ePub
%P ePub-ePub
%X BACKGROUND: Occupational health practitioners working in emergency services, where employees are exposed to a higher level of physical or psychological trauma, need to be able to access trauma therapy programmes which are economically viable and effective in reducing post-traumatic stress disorder and associated symptoms of anxiety and depression. AIMS: The aim of this review is to provide evidence on benefits of a short-term organizational programme of trauma therapy using NICE (2018) [1] recommended interventions. <br><br>METHODS: The review examined the pre- and post-therapy clinical scores from 429 emergency service professionals (ESPs) who were employed in five police forces, two fire and two ambulance services. The ESPs in higher risk roles were in a psychological surveillance programme, with those found to be experiencing clinically significant levels of trauma-related symptoms being referred to a psychologist for an assessment which identified the ESPs requiring trauma therapy. At the end of the therapy, the symptoms of the ESPs were re-assessed, and the scores before and after the therapy were compared. <br><br>RESULTS: The results showed a significant improvement in the level of symptoms, with 81% of ESPs no longer exhibiting clinically significant trauma symptoms and 6% showing an increase in symptoms. In addition, the clinical results also showed improvements in ESPs' perceived work capacity and quality of social relationships. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that there are clinical and personal benefits to using an organizationally based short-term model of trauma therapy in an emergency service setting.<br><br>© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Occupational Medicine. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
%G en
%I Oxford University Press
%@ 0962-7480
%U http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/occmed/kqz111