Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries (PTSI)
Background
On April 8, 2019, the Government of Canada announced the release of Supporting Canada’s Public Safety Personnel: An Action Plan on Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries. The plan will support research, prevention, early intervention, stigma-reduction, care and treatment for all types of public safety personnel, all across the country.
The Action Plan was informed through several consultations which began in 2016 with key stakeholders, including Federal, Provincial and Territorial governments, the Public Safety and Health portfolios, public safety organizations, academia, union representatives, mental health professionals, and non-governmental organizations.
Public safety personnel is a term that broadly encompasses front-line personnel who ensure the safety and security of Canadians across all jurisdictions. Examples can include: tri-services (police – including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, firefighters, and paramedics), correctional employees, border services personnel, operational and intelligence personnel, search and rescue personnel, Indigenous emergency managers, and dispatch (9-1-1) personnel.
The Action Plan builds on recent investments by the Government in this area, including:
- $20 M over five years to support a new National Research Consortium on PTSI among public safety personnel between the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Canadian Institute for Public Safety Research and Treatment (CIPSRT) of which $11M in grant funding has already been announced. This consortium is the first of its kind in Canada and will work specifically to address the incidence of PTSI among public safety officers.
- $10M for an Internet-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy pilot to provide greater access to care and treatment for public safety personnel, especially in rural and remote areas; and
- $400K for Road to Mental Readiness (R2MR) training. R2MR is an evidence-based program designed to reduce mental health stigma, as well as to address and promote mental health resiliency among public safety personnel. Under this project, CIPSRT will deliver four R2MR Master Trainer programs (30 participants per program for a total of 120 participants) over two years. These 120 participants will return to their home organizations and each deliver 1 additional Master Trainer program for 30 new participants, thus producing an additional 3600 Master Trainers.
The Action Plan will also be a key component of a broader Federal Framework on PTSD. Bill C-211, otherwise known as the Federal Framework on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Act, received Royal Assent on June 21, 2018. Pursuant to the Bill, a national conference was convened on April 9-10, 2019, with key stakeholders on the development of a Federal Framework on PTSD to be tabled in Parliament by the Minister of Health by December 2019. The Federal Framework will have a wider scope; while inclusive of public safety personnel, it will also include other audiences such as military, veterans and healthcare professionals.
Status
Departmental officials are currently engaging with CIPSRT, Portfolio members, public safety organizations, academia, and where possible, provinces and territories (PTs) to determine roles and responsibilities for each of the 16 actions listed in the Action Plan.
Considerations
The Action Plan articulates the need to continue to engage PTs through existing fora so that they can be advised of progress and identify ways in which they may contribute toward the achievement of key actions identified in the Plan. The engagement of PTs in the implementation of the Action Plan will require an integrated approach with other federal partner organizations. Public safety personnel work in multiple jurisdictions, each with their own responsibilities, for providing mental health support to their employees.
There are aspects of the PTSI Action Plan that touch different PT areas, such as emergency management; labour; and public health, which are covered by separate FPT fora led by different departments. PS will work with counterparts in Economic and Social Development Canada (Labour), the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada to examine how their respective FPT fora can be engaged. PS will involve PTs through the Senior Officials Responsible for Emergency Management table.
Next Steps
In late Fall 2019, PS will convene a meeting of the CIPSRT steering committee, consisting of national and federal organizations which represent public safety personnel, to advance the Action Plan and identify concrete outcomes for 2019-20, such as specific research activities, R2MR training and Internet-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy pilot treatment opportunities.
PS will also be engaging with search and rescue and Indigenous public safety personnel to identify particular mental health challenges faced by personnel in these communities and examine opportunities to provide support by leveraging the activities of CIPSRT.
PS will also work with PHAC officials to ensure the initiatives and activities under both the Action Plan on PTSI and the Federal Framework on PTSD are aligned so they are complementary and not duplicative. The Federal Framework on PTSD is to be tabled in Parliament by December 2019.
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