Mental Health Outcomes in Police Personnel After Hurricane Katrina

Objective: We examined symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) personnel who provided law enforcement and relief services to affected communities following Hurricane Katrina. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of mental h...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of occupational and environmental medicine 2008-06, Vol.50 (6), p.689-695
Main Authors: West, Christine, Bernard, Bruce, Mueller, Charles, Kitt, Margaret, Driscoll, Richard, Tak, Sangwoo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Aged
Anxiety disorders. Neuroses
Biological and medical sciences
Cross-Sectional Studies
Cyclonic Storms
Depression
Depression - epidemiology
Disasters
Female
Humans
Hurricanes
Male
Medical sciences
Mental depression
Mental Disorders - epidemiology
Mental health
Middle Aged
Mood disorders
Multivariate Analysis
New Orleans - epidemiology
Occupational health
ORIGINAL ARTICLES
Outcome Assessment (Health Care)
Police
Police - statistics & numerical data
Population Surveillance
Post traumatic stress disorder
Prevalence
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Relief Work - statistics & numerical data
Risk factors
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - epidemiology
Surveys and Questionnaires
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Summary:Objective: We examined symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) personnel who provided law enforcement and relief services to affected communities following Hurricane Katrina. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of mental health outcomes related to personal and work-related exposures of police personnel 8 weeks after the Hurricane. Results: Of the 912 police personnel who completed the questionnaire, 227 (26%) reported symptoms consistent with depression and 170 (19%) reported symptoms consistent with PTSD. Risk factors associated with PTSD include recovery of bodies, crowd control, assault, and injury to a family member. Depressive symptoms were associated with rare family contact, uninhabitable home, isolation from the NOPD, assault, and injury to a family member. Conclusions: Police personnel reported symptoms of PTSD and depression associated with work-related and personal factors following Hurricane Katrina.
ISSN:1076-2752
1536-5948
DOI:10.1097/JOM.0b013e3181638685