Explain The Challenges Of Canadian First Responders

In the past, veterans who disclosed suffering from signs of PTSD encountered a great deal of ignorance and bias. According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (n.d.), veterans who had the illness were often considered weak, were rejected by comrades, and even faced discharge from military service. In fact, even physicians and mental health specialists often questioned the existence of the disease, which of course led to society’s misconception of PTSD in general. Sadly because of this existing prejudice it appears even today soldiers are still worried to admit having PTSD symptoms, and therefore they do not receive the proper support they need. While individuals are assured that their careers will not be affected, and seeking help is encouraged, most soldiers see it as a failure to admit having a mental health illness (Zoroya, 2013). Educating military personal of this illness, and making sure no blame is put on the veterans who encounter this disease is therefore vital.

Emergency rescue personnel witnessed the loss of loved ones, furthermore during recovery and rescue efforts they were limited in the amount of debriefing and clinical mental support they received. Priorities at the time focused on saving lives, while mental deterioration was taking place in many simultaneously. “A study published in the Mount Sinai Journal of Medicine found a 71.8% prevalence of PTSD among exposed first responders as opposed to 51.4% among their unexposed counterparts” (Bills et al., 2008). In a 9-year longitudinal cohort study with data gathered from 27,449 participants, including a population of police officers and firefighters among other rescue workers; the cumulative results yielded a 9.3% incidence of PTSD, 8.4% panic disorder, and 7.0% depression, with the higher rates found among those with direct exposure (Wisnivesky et al., 2011). Besides risk factors that contribute to developing PTSD, underestimating its pathophysiological effects can exacerbate the condition. According to Boscarino and Adams (2009), even though 90% of adults have experienced at least a traumatic event in their life; only a small percentage develop PTSD. This further validates the concept of the influence of underlying risk factors post

PTSD having been on the rise following various deployments necessitated by the various wars against terror, where the soldiers encounter traumatic experiences like harsh training conditions, unfavorable living standards, enemy attacks, extreme working environment, explosions, torture by enemies, loss of colleagues as well as long term separation from family back at home (Melinda S & Jeanne S., 2012). This therefore calls for a concerted effort in handling the pandemic of PTSD since it has been constantly on the increase and as a

PTSD is increasing with expanding population today while the decreasing levels of mental healthcare services is making the mismatch more problematic for affected individuals and for the society as a

PTSD’ is a mental illness, found most commonly effecting the mental state of individuals that have been exposed to confronting and/or traumatic events. Paramedics are people who in their everyday lives deal with low and high key events that can take a huge toll on their mental state ability. They are constantly sighting poor health and health conditions, trauma to another human, and the tragedy of death. (1)Despite being identified as a “high risk” occupational group, there is a lack of data concerning the prevalence of emotional problems among emergency ambulance personnel. The lack of data to support the PTSD levels of Paramedics is concerning especially when their work requires high level of concentration to perform precise procedures that

When people hear about someone acquiring PTSD, soldiers are usually the first people that come to mind. Considering that one in every eight soldiers develop PTSD after they return from deployment,

Even soldiers of war has spoken out about their symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and how the media id the truth from them about the effects of war. They describe how if they knew what they know about a soldier's life that they would've thought twice about joining the armed forces. They also described how hard it is to live with PTSD after a war. The everyday things that use to be so simple are now difficult. How memories can pop into their heads at any given minute and bring them back to that time. That time that many soldiers try their hardest to forget. Statistics show that out of a hundred soldiers, forty of them suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (Legarreta, 1).

The symptoms of PTSD make every day civilian life difficult for many Veterans. The disorder can affect a person’s ability to work and interact with their environment and those around them.

Steve Hickie suffers from PTSD due to working as a paramedic, he stated that “people outside of his profession assumed ‘blood and guts’ is traumatic to paramedics”. Hickie disagrees with this assumption, as blood and guts is what paramedics are trained for, trauma is usually experienced in the work field when for an example; you go to someone who's lost their loved one of 50 years. These experiences cause trauma and PTSD because a paramedic may relate and connect with the situation and sometimes it strikes a personal cord. Hickie has suffered severely from PTSD, but unfortunately, he was denied a compensation claim from the work field to support his illness. In fact, most paramedics fail to be provided with a compensation claim, the paramedics state “You seem to get labelled as a troublemaker, it's up to you to prove to the system that you're injured or unwell while you're trying to navigate your own experience of mental illness” (Burgess,

The leading psychological condition of a returning veteran is post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. The Mayo Clinic defines PTSD 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.” PTSD has been known to affect the lives of many returned veterans as they try to re-enter into society. Some of the more common symptoms of PTSD include, “recurring memories or nightmares of the event(s), sleeplessness, loss of interest, or feeling numb, anger, and irritability (What is Post traumatic Stress Disorder).” This can really affect the way people live their day to day life. There are people who cannot go a whole day without having an episode or panic attack. Some can’t even be around other people without it triggering bad memories, making it impossible for them to leave their homes. Other complications of PTSD include, “Increase your risk of other mental health problems, such as: Depression and anxiety, issues with drugs or alcohol use, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and actions (PTSD).” This disorder is more common than most may realize and is so commonly not diagnosed or treated due to how they felt their peers would see them or even the potential damage to their careers. Nbc news wrote that, “Only 38 percent to 40 percent of those who indicated

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a deeper mental problem than being anxious and jumpy. Veterans who have PTSD lose themselves as people. PTSD is one of the most common health issues among military personnel who served in a combat zone. When families have a loved one serving in combat zones, they fear that their soldier may not return home or will have a serious physical injury. But unlike the feared physical injuries, PTSD is not a visible wound, it is an injury of the mind. The PTSD will take a part of their loved one away, the veteran will not be at emotional or social. This disorder is an incurable mental condition caused by a traumatic event or events in person’s life. The soldiers who have PTSD have no way to get rid of

People with PTSD often have anger issues and emotional problems. It is likely for them to have thoughts of suicide and feel completely disconnected from their lives and from other people. They have lived through a drastic trauma that is hard to overcome and go on with their lives. PTSD effects everyday interactions and feelings. Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder affects the daily lives of the people suffering from it. Some may need accommodations at work depending on their personal severance of the disorder. People with PTSD miss more days at work and work less efficiently than people without PTSD (PTSD Effects.) Certain symptoms of PTSD, such as difficulties concentrating and problems sleeping may make it difficult for a person with PTSD to pay attention at work, stay organized, or make it to work on time. People with PTSD also have higher rates of unemployment than people without PTSD. (Military)

The experience leading to posttraumatic stress doesn’t have to last hours on end. In fact, the entire confrontation could last but a short thirty seconds. For many first responders in life-threatening situations, these few seconds can adversely affect the rest of their life (Willis, 2014). From that day or night on, the one affected will be plagued by sleepless nights, nightmares during the minimal hours of rest, and periodic anxiety attacks (Willis, 2014). In just thirty seconds, a well-trained first responder can go from being emotionally stable with a happy heart and life to having an unstable family, marriage, and have an inability to effectively perform many of his or her job duties. In just thirty seconds, one can develop a case of (undiagnosed) posttraumatic stress disorder (Willis, 2014).

PTSD was first taken seriously when the Vietnam veterans returned from the war. Combat experience is the most commonly linked to this disorder. However, studies have shown that there are many different causes. These studies were applied to a wide variety of traumas that people have experienced in various horrific events. According to The National Institute of Mental Health, “about 4% of American adults ages 18-54 suffers from PTSD in a given year. These people have served in wars, have been raped or mugged, lived through natural disasters, terrorist attacks or car or plane crashes” (Mitchell). Anyone who experiences an unnerving situation is at risk for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD is seen as more of an archaic disorder in the

The dilemma that first responder experience is the believe that only the weak will seek help for the things they endure during job. Changing that perspective that seek help due to an exposure to a traumatic incident starts from the top down. Most first responder units are now mandating that the men and women involve in any traumatic incident are required to attend a Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) within 24 to 72 hours after initial contact with the traumatic event. Making CISD mandatory will reduce the chance of emergency service workers, rescue workers, police and fire personnel from experiencing PTSD or ASD. The earlier the intervention the better the chances of the first responder dealing with the traumatic incident.