Erica Virtue, Staff Reporter
The trauma and stress of policing is taking its toll on some members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).
While the indiscriminate murder of citizens by criminal elements has driven fear into the lives of law-abiding Jamaicans, those sworn to serve and protect them are themselves victims of the volatile environment.
The result is that there are high levels of trauma among the ranks of the police force. There have been three suicides in the JCF within the last five years, says Police Federation Chairman, Neville Knight. There have also been several other attempts, The Sunday Gleaner understands.
Too many of the law enforcers suffer from hypertension, a recent Federation study shows and cases involving spousal abuse, hyperactivity, insomnia and overeating have weighed heavily on the group.
In addition, force officials say the bad-mouthing from the general populace also has the membership wilting under pressure.
With a murder rate beyond the 1,000 mark so far this year and more than 100 killed by security personnel, the Police Federation, which represents rank and file members of the JCF, said the evidence of stress and trauma is clear.
"An increase in spousal abuse and other symptoms of trauma have resulted in an expansion of the Police Chaplaincy Unit," Mr. Knight said. According to the Federation head, because of the increased evidence of stress, Commissioner Francis Forbes has made the services of the chaplaincy unit available to spouses.
"In some instances the spouses bear abuse as a result of the day-to-day trauma of policing. They will not tell us (Federa-tion), but they will go to the chaplaincy," said Mr. Knight.
Many police officers are also hypertensive.
"Hypertension is one of the major factors affecting serving members of the rank and file membership that we deal with at the Police Federation," he said.
A study on Law Enforcement Traumatic Stress conducted by United States-based psychiatrist, Dr. Laurence Miller, on cops in America, showed that police officers generally carry out their sworn duties and responsibilities with dedication and valour, but some stresses are too much to take, and every officer has his or her breaking point. While some may break after a single shooting, for others a number of minor incidents over the span of a career can lead to a final breakdown.
According to the study, perhaps the most tragic form of police casualty coming from stress is suicide. Dr. Miller says twice as many officers in America die by their own hand as are killed in the line of duty.
"In New York City, the suicide rate for police officers is more than double the rate for the general population." the study claimed.
While there are no official study on the Jamaican cop in this regard, local doctors agree that suicide is a possible outcome of constant exposure to stress.
Medical doctor, Orville Nembhard, corroborated the symptoms noted by the Federation, but said these were not uncommon to the rest of society.
"Stress will result in a number of ways, insomnia, irritability which leads to aggression and then to a myriad of other complaints, for which there are no explanations," he said yesterday.
