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 December 2020 | Volume 13 | Issue 12

    In an ongoing effort to keep a finger on the pulse of officer experiencesin the field, the National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP)    routinely engages in surveys of its national membership of more than    356,000 to gauge the impacts of issues relevant for the profession. Most    recently, the National FOP gathered preliminary data that reveals the    impact policing during the COVID-19 pandemic may have on law enforcement    wellness now and well into the future. Through the Collaborative Reform    Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRI-TAC), the National FOP has been    able to share insights and recommendations for best practices moving    forward regarding wellness and policing during a pandemic.

    Not surprisingly, the pandemic has created additional stress beyond the    traditional levels felt by officers and deputies, with almost 80 percent of    survey respondents reporting their stress levels were slightly or much    higher during the pandemic than pre-pandemic levels. The two greatest    sources of increased stress were (1) fear of infecting family members or    loved ones with the virus and (2) increased enforcement of restrictions on    the public. Approximately two-thirds of survey respondents also perceive    that their families have suffered slightly to much higher levels of stress    related to the officer’s work during the pandemic.

	View the CRI-TAC webinar: "How to Prevent a Global Crisis from Becoming a Personal One: Stress Management in High Stress Times"    
In November, the CRI-TAC brought together subject matter experts from the    National Sheriffs’ Association, the National FOP, and the         Metropolitan Nashville (Tennessee) Police Department        to present to agencies, and individual officers, and deputies specialized    strategies for coping and adapting to policing during this time. In a    virtual webinar format, presenters explored common reactions to stress and    discussed ways the pandemic may make for an even more challenging    environment than normal. Information was provided on structuring agency and    individual responses to the pandemic, and examples were given on how to    establish effective support programs within an agency.

    	Guided by the idea of likening the pandemic to a protracted critical    incident, presenters provided strategies to better enable law enforcement    agencies to support, monitor, and evaluate their personnel during periods    of added stress. For example, they recommended that agencies establish    multifaceted and diverse support services, recognizing that each individual    officer will respond differently but all need and acquire support in    different ways. As stress is also cumulative and the duration of pandemic    effects increases, agencies should be prepared to deliver support services    not only during the pandemic period but into the future as well. Given the    impact on families, agencies should seek to educate not only their staff    but also their families not only about the potential physical effects of    the pandemic but also about added stressors and potential mental health    impacts.

    As the law enforcement profession navigates the challenges of the pandemic    and other trends, monitoring the wellness of personnel and their families    will remain important. Law enforcement agencies should seek to be agile at    identifying officers who may be struggling with additional challenges    related to the pandemic. For example, how has the single parent whose child    cannot physically attend school because of restrictions been impacted?

    While most agencies have been vigilant about monitoring their officers’    physical health during the pandemic, agencies should also take equal care    to monitor the mental health of personnel as stress levels increase.    Turning again to data gathered by the National FOP, considerably more than    half of officers and deputies felt positive about the level of support    their agency provided regarding physical dangers of the pandemic and with    the provision of adequate PPE. However, barely a third felt the same level    of support from their agency regarding increased mental and emotional    stresses related to the pandemic. Thus, law enforcement agencies should be    mindful to conduct ongoing evaluations of support services, ensuring that    interventions serve to maximally impact maintenance and improvement of    officer and deputy mental health now and into the future.
Learn More
    	To learn more about the CRI-TAC, download a brochure, or request assistance    for your agency, visit the CRI-TAC website.

    Sherri Martin, National Director of Wellness Services        National Fraternal Order of Police

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The Community Policing Dispatch is the e-newsletter of the COPS Office. 

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