Exploring the implications of post-traumatic stress disorder on police

To date, extensive research demonstrates a correlation exists between a critical incident by police officers and post-traumatic stress disorder. This is a significant issue as police officers are inherently exposed to critical incidents throughout their work duties, placing them at an increased risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder. According to Fox et al., (2012), approximately 24% of the police officers have some degree of post-traumatic stress disorder in their United States survey. Post-traumatic stress disorder can be defined as “a mental health condition that's triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event” (Mayo Clinic, 2017b, para. 1). Post-traumatic stress disorder can have a negative impact on an individual: it can impact their sleeping pattern, lead to alcohol abuse and develop into severe mental health issues (Hartley, Violanti, Sarkisian, Andrew & Burchfiel, 2013). Many officers have not sought mental health assistance because they believe that this will have a negative impact on their career (Fox et al., 2012). In order to limit the impact of post-traumatic stress disorder, one must know what it is and become aware of the indicators of symptoms of the disorder (Gates, M., Holowka, D., Vasterling, J., Keane, T., Marx, B., & Rosen, R., 2012). Education with respect to post-traumatic stress disorder is important to get the person in need the help they require. The Vancouver police department created a critical incident stress management team to address this issue amongst their members after the exposure to a critical incident (Behind the blue line, 2009b). Early intervention after exposure to a critical incident has shown to be critical in eliminating the progression of the disorder. The main purpose for screening of post-traumatic stress disorder is to identify individuals who have had exposure to a critical incident. The goal of this process is to intervene early on in an attempt to prevent the disorder form progressing and becoming more intrusive in the individual’s life (Gates et al., 2012). The relationship between critical incident exposure, the development of post-traumatic stress disorder and the subsequent cost of post-traumatic stress disorder will be examined in this research paper.