Past
Over the past several decades, the mental health of police officers and other first responders has been overlooked. Even though mental health illness has been found to be relatively widespread among Canadian police, which leads to adverse outcomes, including suicidal behavior. According to 2017 data, 52% of the surveyed police officers reported having moderate to severe stress, while 11% noted having extremely severe stress (Auditor General of Canada, 2017). In regard to anxiety, 88% of police officers reported having moderate to severe anxiety, while 12% said they had extremely severe anxiety (Auditor General of Canada, 2017). 87% of the surveyed police officers reported having moderate to severe depression, with 13% experiencing a severe level of depression (Auditor General of Canada, 2017). Thus, both depression and anxiety are somewhat on the same level in prevalence.
Finally, 29% of responders fell in the clinical diagnostic range for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) even though the lifetime prevalence rate of PTSD among the general Canadian population was 9% (Auditor General of Canada, 2017). Even though the statistics indicate that mental health challenges have significantly affected the population under question, the problem has not yet been resolved effectively. It is notable that the symptoms of various mental health issues can occur throughout the lifetime and exacerbate with time, with conditions possibly getting worse if they remain unaddressed.
Present
Considering the history of mental health challenges among Canadian police officers, the current context indicates that the pressure will not alleviate any time soon. Specifically, the post-COVID-19 context is characterized by law enforcement officers having to deal with a larger scope of challenges when serving their communities in an environment of physical and psychological pressures (Tehrani, 2022). In contrast to many other incidents, the COVID-19 pandemic has been and remained a significant public health emergency that put a strain on police officers and their mental health.
As found in the study by Tehrani (2022), most police officers that worked during the pandemic have been emotionally affected by it, with the lowest indicators of mental health being strongly related to anxiety and depression and not compassion fatigue or PTSD. However, in individuals who have already been vulnerable to PTSD symptoms and reported experiencing compassion fatigue, the addition of anxiety and depression led to the deterioration of their mental health (Tehrani, 2022). If they remain unaddressed, the symptoms of mental health issues among law enforcement will build up, creating disengaged teams that will be less effective and productive in their everyday service.
Future
The exploration of the past and present challenges associated with the mental health of Canadian police officers calls for the development of a sustainable initiative targeting separate police departments across the country to identify their mental health needs and help address them. There is a lack of reports on how the Canadian police force receives care for their mental health challenges, which calls for the reconsideration of the current practices in the future. While the report of the Government of Canada (2019) provides evidence for an action plan on post-traumatic stress injuries experienced by police officers, there is not enough attention given to other mental health challenges. Besides, more research is needed to identify the pressing mental health needs of specifically Canadian police offers to recommend a plan of action that will allow for meeting them on both short- and long-term bases.
References
Auditor General of Canada. (2017). Report 4 – mental health support for members. Web.
Government of Canada. (2019). Supporting Canada’s public safety personnel: An action plan on post-traumatic stress injuries. Web.
Tehrani N. (2022). The psychological impact of COVID-19 on police officers. The Police Journal, 95(1), 73–87. Web.