Health disparities among police officers

Details

• Personal Author:
  Andrew, Michael E. ; Burchfiel CM ; Fekedulegn D ; Hartley TA ; Mnatsakanova A ; Violanti JM
• Description:
  In this chapter, key studies on police officer health, including work with the Buffalo Cardio-metabolic Occupational Police Stress (BCOPS) Study, were compared with results from studies of other U.S. employed adults. Police officers have higher levels of traditional CVD risk factors, including more current smokers, higher levels of obesity, hypertension and dyslipidemia, than other U.S. employed adults. Officers also have higher prevalence of the non-traditional risk factors like depression, sleep insufficiency and shift work. Specific groups of officers who may be more adversely affected by these stressors including women and ethnic minorities who are underrepresented in policing, and military veterans who may be at greater risk for psychological disorders including post-traumatic stress disorder and depression, were also identified. Both the scientific literature and accounts from police officers themselves describe the stressors associated with being an officer. These include the routine organizational stressors common to other workers, along with unique stressors like shift work and exposure to dangerous and potentially life-threatening situations. Officers recognize the potential health effects associated with these stressors. Prior research has demonstrated associations between these stressors and poor health outcomes using cross-sectional studies, which limit the ability to determine if the exposure led to the outcome. Future studies of police officers should use a prospective study design so that the association and the potential biologic mechanisms responsible for these health disparities can be better understood. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Cardiovascular Diseases Cardiovascular System Emergency Responders Law Enforcement Mental Health Occupational Health Safety Shift Work Schedule Sleep Initiation And Maintenance Disorders Stress, Psychological
• Keywords:
  Cardiovascular-disease Cardiovascular-system Cardiovascular-system-disease Cardiovascular-system-disorders Emergency-responders Humans Police-officers Psychological-effects Psychological-reactions Psychological-stress Shift-work Shift-workers Sleep-disorders

  More +
• ISBN:
  9780398087722
• Publisher:
  Charles C. Thomas Publisher, Ltd.
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Book
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2 ; OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  HELD - Health Effects Laboratory Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  21-35
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20044793
• Citation:
  Dying for the job: police work exposure and health. Violanti JM, ed. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas Publisher, Ltd., 2014 Feb; :21-35
• Editor(s):
  Violanti JM
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2014
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  Dying for the job: police work exposure and health
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:4e519a84d972bba38c27c7bf0eb13fbeff8ceb1697b8958e07a1ce1ea8dc3ed109a3f8e516179b3ae2b02865cc305f1cf39efbf8b2c081927e37115f3605a701
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/200420/cdc_200420_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 152.46 KB ]