Collaboration Helps Police Address Job Stress
New program challenges stigma and honors officers who help each other and themselves
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Mangled bodies, gunfire, high-speed chases and injured children are just a few events witnessed by police officers and soldiers serving in dangerous hot spots around the world.
In an attempt to reduce on-the-job stress among police officers, the city of Cleveland's Division of Police has partnered with the Mandel School of Applied Sciences (MSASS) at Case Western Reserve University, the Partnership for a Safer Cleveland and the U.S. Department of Defense to form an innovative program which trains police supervisors to identify and assist with operational stress.
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Stress can take a high toll on police officers and soldiers, who can be reluctant to share their experiences in an effort to spare others from their ordeals, according to a current Police Quarterly article on the subject, written by U.S. Army Lt. Col. (retired) Mark Chapin, Professor Mark Singer of MSASS and Partnership for a Safer Cleveland Executive Director Michael Walker.
"Police officers face job stress in the line of duty 24 hours a day. Even the toughest officer can eventually feel it. We want to change the operational climate of silence about problems and the stigma toward seeking help," said Chapin, who is one of the program trainers. A graduate of the MSASS, Chapin currently serves as a clinical social worker at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
"Police work is highly stressful and one of the few occupations where an individual continually faces the inherent danger of physical violence and the potential of sudden death," said Mark Singer, professor of social work at the Mandel School, who has been involved in training Cleveland police officers for the past 15 years and helped design the program.
"The early identification of operational stress increases the likelihood of positive outcomes in police-citizen interactions," said Michael Walker, who also helped design and implement the training program. In past years, Walker and Singer have teamed up to provide on-the-job training for local police in a variety of areas.
The latest initiative, begun in 2005, evolved from their work with youth and law enforcement officials. They hope this and future programs will promote health and support among police officers as they carry out their service to Cleveland communities.
Source:
http://blog.case.edu/case-news/2008/09/16/policepartnership
