Developing resilience interventions for emergency service responders—a view from the field

Hesketh, Ian and Tehrani, Noreen (2024) Developing resilience interventions for emergency service responders—a view from the field. Public Money and Management, 44 (2). pp. 117-123. ISSN 0954-0962

Abstract

Police, as members of the family of Emergency Services Responders (ESRs), deal with multiple traumas. Preparing ESRs to deal effectively with traumatic incidents is complex; coping with the aftermath may be even more demanding. This article unravels the complexity of providing guidance on how ESRs anticipate, understand and prepare themselves and their colleagues to cope with daily mental and physical challenges. The work of ESRs can be rewarding and deliver satisfaction in terms of meaning and purpose; it also has the power to destroy an ESR’s resilience to carry out such work. The emotional, compassionate and empathetic capacities of effective ESRs can be tested to their limits during and after traumatic incidents. This article is situated in a world emerging from the ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic. It provides a practitioner’s view of the complexity of the work of ESRs to provoke further research in this field of study.