Post incident and trauma support: working together to keep SFRS staff well

Justin Smithson and Gill Moreton SFRS and Rivers Centre, NHS Lothian

A longstanding partnership

Rivers Centre began providing treatment for fire and rescue staff with post traumatic injuries in
1999

Working with legacy service – Lothian & Borders, Central and Fife Fire and Rescue

Continued with East Service Delivery Area and awarded national contract in 2019

Checking risk factors..

Has this particular incident bothered you more than others?

During the incident, did you feel as if it wasn’t happening or it wasn’t real?

In the 2 or 3 days after the incident did you have a sense of unreality?

Do you feel you were able to help as much as you could have done?

Are there things you wish you had done differently?

Do you think other people could have helped more than they did?

Did things go according to plan as far as possible?

Did any of the victims remind you of anyone close to you?

Is there someone you would talk to if you thought you had a problem?

Do you feel particularly under pressure at the moment at home?

Do you feel particularly under pressure at the moment at work?

Have you been ‘off sick’ for more than 10 days in total during the last six months?

Do you think you receive the support you need?

Questionnaires screened by Rivers clinician

If staff ask for contact, response within 24 hours

Make outreach (check-in) calls for staff dependent on Q responses

Face to face, video or phone call

Help them make sense of what it is about this incident at this time that has affected them

Look at what they can do to recover - Reinstate previous strategies / develop new ones

Provide evidence-based treatments when needed (TFCBT / EMDR)

Referrals from SFRS Health and Wellbeing team

Requests for assessment and treatment

Liaison with and advice for HWB practitioners

Input / attendance at case conferences

2021 - 2022

SFRS initiated PISP for 306 incidents.

542 people returned forms which were screened at the Rivers Centre.

22 people self-referred to the Rivers Centre via PISP.

109 outreach calls to staff (7 of these were offered treatment).

47 people were referred by Occupational Health for psychological assessment and treatment.

100% of people were offered an appointment within 10 days and 65% seen within 5 working days.

Early intervention works:

The average number of sessions of psychological therapy required from PISP self-referral was 5 and from OH referrals was 12 sessions.

Psychological therapy works:

The 62 people completing treatment at the Rivers Centre in the past year had significant improvements in symptoms.

Supporting attendance at work:

40 of the 62 were at work and stayed at work for the duration of treatment.

22 people were off sick at the start of treatment and 20 of them had returned to work by the end of treatment.

What people have said about their treatment at the Rivers Centre

100% of SFRS staff were satisfied with the service provided.

100% of staff say their problems have improved significantly because of the treatment they received.

100% of staff would recommend accessing support at the Rivers Centre to their colleagues.

Through the worst of times

“The work that Rivers does keeps the emergency services rolling out the door. We have kit on the appliances we use to save lives, effect rescues, I personally feel that the one piece of kit we tend to forget is you guys.

You roll out the door with us to every shout and that is a piece of kit that is invaluable in my eyes and saves lives.”