Background: Police officers are at high risk for mental and physical health problems and
suicidal ideation. The specific risk factors are numerous and concern stressful missions
and administrative aspects of the police profession. So far, the police get only little training
on specific missions as well as on coping with stress and suicidal ideation in the police
profession. In this study we test the efficacy of the online training COPS (Coping with
Suicide) for police officers.
Methods: A total of 142 police officers fromGermany and Switzerland participated in the
study; complete data (baseline and post) are available from 102 participants. The training
consisted of three modules covering the topics of delivering death notifications, dealing
with individuals with suicidal ideation and dealing with one’s own distress and suicidal
ideation in the police profession. The primary outcomes are perceived knowledge and
self-rated competence regarding the contents of the program, actual knowledge as well
as symptoms of depression and anxiety (PHQ-9), and attitudes toward suicide (ATTS).
The data are collected at baseline and after completing the training.
Results: We found a significant increase in knowledge as well as in perceived
competence after completing the training. Mental health and attitudes toward suicide did
not change significantly. Years on the job had no moderating effect on the effectiveness
of the training.
Discussion: The results suggest that a short e-learning program significantly improves
knowledge and self-rated competence in delivering death notifications, in suicide
prevention and stress management. It can be easily integrated into the daily routine
of police-officers, and participants could participate at their own pace and from any
location. One limitation of this study is the lack of a control-group. Further advantages
and limitations of this study are discussed.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:DRESDEN/oai:qucosa:de:qucosa:84490 |
| Date | 31 March 2023 |
| Creators | Hofmann, Laura, Glaesmer, Heide, Przyrembel, Marisa, Wagner, Birgit |
| Publisher | Frontiers Research Foundation |
| Source Sets | Hochschulschriftenserver (HSSS) der SLUB Dresden |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion, doc-type:article, info:eu-repo/semantics/article, doc-type:Text |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Relation | 1664-0640, 770277 |
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