A Computerized, Self-Administered Questionnaire to Evaluate Posttraumatic Stress Among Firefighters After the World Trade Center Collapse

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cammarata C ; Corrigan M ; Feirstein I ; Glass L ; Hallman WK ; Jones K ; Kelly KJ ; Kipen HM ; McWilliams R ; Niles J ; Prezant DJ ; Schorr JK ; Wartenberg D
• Description:
  We sought to determine the frequency of psychological symptoms and elevated posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) risk among New York City firefighters after the World Trade Center (WTC) attack and whether these measures were associated with Counseling Services Unit (CSU) use or mental health-related medical leave over the first 2.5 years after the attack. METHODS: Shortly after the WTC attack, a computerized, binary-response screening questionnaire was administered. Exposure assessment included WTC arrival time and "loss of a co-worker while working at the collapse." We determined elevated PTSD risk using thresholds derived from Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision, and a sensitivity-specificity analysis. RESULTS: Of 8487 participants, 76% reported at least 1 symptom, 1016 (12%) met criteria for elevated PTSD risk, and 2389 (28%) self-referred to the CSU, a 5-fold increase from before the attack. Higher scores were associated with CSU use, functional job impairment, and mental health-related medical leave. Exposure-response gradients were significant for all outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: This screening tool effectively identified elevated PTSD risk, higher CSU use, and functional impairment among firefighters and therefore may be useful in allocating scarce postdisaster mental health resources. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Diagnosis Environmental Monitoring Epidemiology Firefighters Hazardous Substances Health Care Facilities Workforce And Services Mental Health Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Risk Assessment Safety Stress, Psychological Surveys And Questionnaires Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Clinical-diagnosis Exposure-assessment Exposure-methods Fire-fighters Health-hazards Health-services Health-surveys Medical-services Mental-health Mental-stress Occupational-exposure Occupational-hazards Occupational-health Occupational-psychology Psychological-effects Psychological-factors Psychological-reactions Psychological-stress Questionnaires Risk-analysis Statistical-analysis Stress Work-analysis Work-environment Work-operations Work-performance Worker-health

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• ISSN:
  0090-0036
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  99
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20036277
• Citation:
  Am J Public Health 2009 Nov; 99(Suppl 3):S702-S709
• Contact Point Address:
  David J. Prezant, MD, Fire Department of the City of New York, Office of Medical Affairs, Room 4w-1, 9 Metrotech Center, Brooklyn, NY 11201
• Email:
  prezand@fdny.nyc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2010
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services
• Performing Organization:
  New York City Fire Department
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20040701
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Public Health
• Supplement:
  S
• End Date:
  20110630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d8e44361e717fd60503392b1a6e6d84c17e6a60f47db978be2e3af049a7e7cf33f445354430937b557adc5fe42ac79554fbab880197ca3a042999841566a2244
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/187762/cdc_187762_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 651.39 KB ]