\u201cMental health in policing is a timebomb\u201d, the Chair of South Yorkshire Police Federation has said, as a new Police Traumatic Events Checklist is released.<\/p>\n
Police Care UK has produced the checklist, which shows what experiences are most commonly considered traumatic by officers and staff of all ranks across policing.<\/p>\n
The checklist, produced in collaboration with the Police Federation of England and Wales, can be used by individual officers, supervisors, the Federation, counsellors or other relevant parties.<\/p>\n
A 2018 survey by Police Care UK found that more than 90% of UK police officers have had traumatic experiences on the job, with over 20% still being affected by those incidents to clinical levels of disorder (such as PTSD).<\/p>\n
South Yorkshire Police Federation Chair Steve Kent said: \u201cI can\u2019t believe that figure is as low as 90%. I think any officer who\u2019s had any frontline experience \u2013 which is every officer \u2013 will have faced trauma.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve seen statistics in the past that say you experience more trauma as a frontline officer than you do as a battle soldier in war zones. I didn\u2019t understand that at first, until someone explained to me the drip-drip effect of going to incidents like that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was a response car driver for over a decade. You\u2019re going to four or five incidents every day that involve some level of trauma. Even though individually they might not be that horrific, the drip-drip effect of that is massively negative.\u201d<\/p>\n
There needs to be a review into mental health in policing and more Government-funded counselling for officers, Steve said.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cThere needs to be a fundamental review of policing, because I think mental health in policing is an absolute timebomb. We\u2019re seeing now that mental health is becoming more of an issue when it comes to ill-health retirement, and we need to start dealing with it earlier otherwise policing is going to face an explosion of people needing to take time out from the job or leave the job.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s even a potential risk of litigation in terms of health and safety and not protecting our officers.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery frontline officer should have a consultation and a discussion with an appropriate medical professional every year. I know our force can\u2019t afford that, it hasn\u2019t got the money, so this has to be centrally funded.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn our force we have got excellent mental-health provision through the force\u2019s counselling services as well as the Federation\u2019s Group Insurance Scheme with our own dedicated counsellor.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot all forces are fortunate to have that, but we shouldn\u2019t be having to do that. It\u2019s nice that we can and we\u2019re proud that we do, but this should be done as a matter of course.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf train drivers have an accident at work, they get professional counselling automatically. We get absolutely nothing and it\u2019s absolutely ridiculous.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not saying it\u2019s a pleasant thing for train drivers, but the train driver who unfortunately might be involved in a suicide is quite rightly looked after and protected. But the police officer who is picking up body parts from the railway lines, they get nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cPolice officers are not robots. Police officers are human, and I have a steady stream of experienced, apparently rock-solid frontline officers who are starting to break towards the end of their service. We\u2019ve got to be very, very careful\u201d.<\/p>\n