The impact of posttraumatic sress on Iraqi police

This paper explores the psychological impact of posttraumatic stress on a sample of the Iraqi Police Service (IPS). Four separate surveys of lPS members were administered utilizing a 17-item National Center for PTSD checklist. In total, 231 of the 520 IPS (44%) achieved scores indicating that they had met the criteria for the diagnosis of PTSD. As a result, a two-hour lecture dealing with critical incidents, stress, cumulative stress, vicarious traumatization, posttraumatic stress disorder reactions to terrorism, compassion fatigue, burnout, and acute traumatic stress management (ATSM--which helps manage individual responses during traumatic events) was developed. This intervention was translated and conducted in Arabic for the IPS. It was noted that the majority of IPS surveyed never had been given information regarding traumatic stress symptoms or reactions, nor were they aware that they themselves might have traumatic stress. In addition, there is very little access to appropriate psychological assistance, either on the job or in the community.