Rachel L. Krakauer|Andrea M. Stelnicki|R. Nicholas Carleton
Examining Mental Health Knowledge, Stigma, and Service Use Intentions Among Public Safety Personnel
University of Regina|University of Regina|University of Regina
public safety personnel psp eg communications officials eg 911 call center operatorsdispatchers correctional service employees firefighters paramedics police officers experience elevated risk mental disorders due inherent workrelated stress several programs designed increase mental health knowledge intending reduce stigma increase mental health service helpseeking eg resilience training however extant programs demonstrated sustained improvements psp mental health current study assessed levels mental health knowledge stigma service use intentions sample canadian psp compared trends published estimates mental health symptoms across psp categories inform future programmingpsp completed questionnaires assessing mental health knowledge stigma coworkers mental illness professional service use intentions correlations among variables oneway analyses variance conducted assess differences among categories psp categorized six categories comparison communication officials correctional workers firefighters municipalprovincial police paramedics royal canadian mounted police rcmpthere significant differences categories variable correctional workers reported mental health knowledge least stigma highest intentions use mental health services highest positive screens mental disorders conversely firefighters reported lowest mental health knowledge highest stigma lowest willingness seek professional help lowest prevalence positive screens mental disordersthe results contrast previously hypothesized associations among mental health variables education stigma reduction helpseeking expected improve mental health discrepant results offer potentially critical information organizational policies better support psp individuals reporting mental health symptoms may appropriate target audience intervention strategies given possible crucial role personal experience plays increasing mental health knowledge ultimately encouraging helpseeking