TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2018//
TI  - Mental disorder symptoms among public safety personnel in Canada
JO  - Canadian journal of psychiatry, The
A1  - Carleton, R. Nicholas
A1  - Afifi, Tracie O.
A1  - Turner, Sarah
A1  - Taillieu, Tamara
A1  - Duranceau, Sophie
A1  - Lebouthillier, Daniel M.
A1  - Sareen, Jitender
A1  - Ricciardelli, Rose
A1  - MacPhee, Renée S.
A1  - Groll, Dianne
A1  - Hozempa, Kadie
A1  - Brunet, Alain
A1  - Weekes, John R.
A1  - Griffiths, Curt T.
A1  - Abrams, Kelly J.
A1  - Jones, Nicholas A.
A1  - Beshai, Shadi
A1  - Cramm, Heidi A.
A1  - Dobson, Keith S.
A1  - Hatcher, Simon
A1  - Keane, Terence M.
A1  - Stewart, Sherry H.
A1  - Asmundson, Gordon J. G.
SP  - 54
EP  - 64
VL  - 63
IS  - 1
N2  - BACKGROUND: Canadian public safety personnel (PSP; e.g., correctional workers, dispatchers, firefighters, paramedics, police officers) are exposed to potentially traumatic events as a function of their work. Such exposures contribute to the risk of developing clinically significant symptoms related to mental disorders. The current study was designed to provide estimates of mental disorder symptom frequencies and severities for Canadian PSP. <br><br>METHODS: An online survey was made available in English or French from September 2016 to January 2017. The survey assessed current symptoms, and participation was solicited from national PSP agencies and advocacy groups. Estimates were derived using well-validated screening measures. <br><br>RESULTS: There were 5813 participants (32.5% women) who were grouped into 6 categories (i.e., call center operators/dispatchers, correctional workers, firefighters, municipal/provincial police, paramedics, Royal Canadian Mounted Police). Substantial proportions of participants reported current symptoms consistent with 1 (i.e., 15.1%) or more (i.e., 26.7%) mental disorders based on the screening measures. There were significant differences across PSP categories with respect to proportions screening positive based on each measure. <br><br>INTERPRETATION: The estimated proportion of PSP reporting current symptom clusters consistent with 1 or more mental disorders appears higher than previously published estimates for the general population; however, direct comparisons are impossible because of methodological differences. The available data suggest that Canadian PSP experience substantial and heterogeneous difficulties with mental health and underscore the need for a rigorous epidemiologic study and category-specific solutions.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0706-7437
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0706743717723825
ID  - ref1
ER  -