Who are public safety personnel?
Public safety personnel (PSP) play a critical role in protecting communities and responding to emergencies. They come from diverse backgrounds and work under extreme conditions that can impact their well-being.
The main categories of PSP include:
- Law enforcement (police officers, border officers, corrections officers)
- Fire services
- Emergency medical services (EMS)
- Specialized emergency services
Each of these roles presents unique challenges, requiring both awareness and culturally competent support.
- Awareness
- Sensitivity
- Knowledge
- Skills
Learning objectives
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
- Reflect on how your cultural background and biases influence how you view and support PSP.
- Recognize how biases shape perceptions of PSP’s mental health needs and the challenges they face during crises.
Why this matters
Public safety roles can take a lasting toll on workers’ health and well-being. Your views and beliefs about PSP influence their willingness to seek help and how you build relationships with them. It’s important to continually reflect on these perceptions and how they may affect your interactions.
Understanding the scope of PSP in emergencies
Public safety workers encounter daily stressors that intensify during crises. Their responsibilities can include:
- Responding to violence and critical incidents
- Navigating ethical dilemmas in high-pressure situations
- Facing risks to personal safety
- Managing community distrust in some contexts
For example, police officers often experience stigma around seeking mental health support. One officer shared:
“There’s still that stigma — people are worried about if I say something, am I going to be looked at as weaker, or is it going to hurt me in promotion for something?”
Recognizing the impact of social identity in high-stress situations
Factors like race, gender, and socioeconomic status shape how PSP experience health challenges and seek support.
- BIPOC PSP and immigrant workers may face language barriers or discrimination, making it harder to express their mental health struggles.
- Women in male-dominated fields, like firefighting, often face additional stress from workplace biases and expectations.
A female firefighter reflected on this challenge:
“I noticed that the women have it way harder than men do. Just with the main criticism of women — they can’t do the job — which means that all the women we’d have on our job certainly can do the job. But from all the old-school people, that’s something I have seen.”
Reflective questions
How can social identity influence mental health needs of PSP during emergencies?
How does this compare to non-emergency situations?
Learning objectives
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
- Develop an emotional understanding of the unique challenges faced by PSP.
- Consider the diverse backgrounds and pressures that impact their well-being.
Why this matters
Supporting PSP requires an openness to learning about their experiences and a willingness to develop the skills needed to provide effective care.
Emotional and mental health stressors for PSP
Public safety personnel frequently experience traumatic events, which can lead to delayed or suppressed emotional responses.
- Many are encouraged to suppress emotions in high-stakes environments.
- Some develop moral injury — a deep sense of guilt or distress from actions taken during crises.
For example, a paramedic described a distressing experience during the COVID-19 pandemic:
“When we came back after gowning up, the patient was lying face down on his steps. He had a cardiac arrest in the time it took for us to finish putting on this [personal protective equipment]. We went from taking a call for someone who was still alive to someone who had died in the time for us to put on PPE.”
Cultural sensitivity to mental health disparities in crisis response
Social and economic disparities affect PSP’s ability to seek mental health support:
- 2SLGBTQIA+ PSP may face added stress from workplace bias or discrimination.
- Low-income PSP may struggle to afford mental health care due to financial barriers.
A paramedic reflected on this challenge:
“I should be getting psychological help. But it’s expensive.”
Reflective questions
What factors contribute to burnout among PSP?
What emotions and concerns might be amplified during disasters and emergencies?
Learning objectives
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
- Identify common mental health challenges faced by PSP in crisis situations.
- Understand how cultural identity influences their stress, coping strategies, and help-seeking behaviour.
Why this matters
PSP face significant mental health risks due to the high-stress nature of their work. These challenges don’t disappear when a crisis ends — many PSP continue to experience lasting effects, including PTSD, anxiety, and burnout. Without proper support, these stressors can impact their well-being, job performance, and long-term health.
Understanding the mental health challenges of PSP in crisis situations
The psychological impact of crisis response can last long after the emergency ends. PSP often experience:
- PTSD from repeated exposure to trauma
- Sleep disturbances that worsen mental health symptoms
- Depression and anxiety due to sustained stress
A firefighter shared how sleep deprivation affected them during the pandemic:
“I wasn’t sleeping. I could only sleep for a couple of hours at a time, day or night. I was always tired.”
A correctional officer described the impact of repeated trauma exposure:
“We witness things that are beyond human comprehension. Of course we’re all having these mental health diagnoses and getting PTSD and all of this stuff.”
The role of cultural identity in mental health experiences
Cultural identity influences how PSP experience mental health, cope with stress, and seek support.
- Indigenous PSP may rely on cultural traditions for resilience, yet these approaches are not always recognized or supported in mainstream emergency response settings.
- Immigrant PSP may turn to community or faith-based organizations rather than formal mental health services.
- BIPOC PSP often experience additional stress due to discrimination or systemic barriers within their workplace.
A study by D’Alessandro-Lowe (2024) found that PSP who received organizational support and had a strong sense of spiritual well-being experienced fewer symptoms of moral injury during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reflective questions
How might race, gender, or ethnicity impact PSP mental health outcomes?
How does cultural identity shape mental health expression, help-seeking, and treatment preferences?
Learning objectives
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
- Use culturally informed skills to support PSP effectively.
- Provide compassionate and effective mental health support during emergencies.
Why this matters
Supporting PSP requires a caring, non-judgmental approach that acknowledges their unique health challenges. Flexibility and cultural awareness are essential, especially when assisting those from underrepresented groups who face additional barriers.
Building culturally competent communication skills
Effective communication is key to supporting PSP:
- Use trauma-informed approaches that acknowledge their experiences.
- Listen actively and validate their concerns.
- Respect cultural perspectives on mental health and coping.
A PSP professional described the importance of resilience in their field:
“We discuss very shocking things — things we don’t realize are shocking. [People in this role] need to be really upfront that they’re going to be OK with this. We don’t want to traumatize someone by trying to share our trauma. That defeats the purpose [by] creating another victim.”
Building trust and rapport in crisis situations
Establishing trust takes time, but it’s essential for supporting PSP.
- Peer support programs tailored to their roles can help break down stigma.
- Accessible resources — such as multilingual mental health services — can increase engagement.
Reflective questions
How can you build trust with PSP while respecting diverse backgrounds?
How can cultural competency improve mental health support for PSP during crises?