Push for better screening of police recruits to help address PTSD issue
POTENTIAL police officers should be better screened to make sure they are aware of the mental health risks of the job, according to a powerful group made up of representatives from police forces, health professionals and academics.
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POLICE recruits should be better screened to make sure they are aware of the mental health risks of the job, according to a national summit of police forces, health professionals and academics.
The recent meeting in Canberra, attended by Victoria Police and forces from other states, came up with a host of recommendations to overhaul police practices to address the issue of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The group found recruits needed to be better briefed before they signed up, so they could make a decision on whether they were mentally prepared for the job.
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Other recommendations included increased training for officers to deal with trauma- related stress and allowing families of officers to be briefed directly on the risks and symptoms of PTSD.
Commander Shane Cole, head of Victoria Police’s health and safety division, said the force had already worked to address PTSD.
“It was great to have people there who have suffered from PTSD,” Cdr Cole said.
“We all have this same problem … we needed to come together as a group and talk about these common issues.”
Victoria Police now screened potential recruits for suitability more than ever, Cdr Cole said. “We run three psych tests for our applicants. We have a fairly high failure rate. Policing is such a different role, you need to have a certain set of traits and abilities,” he said.
Alex West, senior psychologist at Victoria Police, said the force had a duty of care in selection of candidates.
“We reviewed the entire psychological screening processes in 2012, then we changed the type of tests and number of tests we do and implemented that in 2015,” Dr West said.
Cdr Cole said Victoria Police was rolling out a number of programs around “upskilling” managers and workers in what symptoms to look for, and what to do.
Last year the Herald Sun revealed stress and injury cost 72,000 police shifts in 2016-17, amid a dramatic escalation of sick days.
The loss of days was the equivalent of more than 350 full-time Victoria Police members off the job for a year.