Post traumatic stress symptoms and Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) in Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel

EMS personnel were examined for Post Traumatic Stress symptoms and the usefulness of Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) using the Los Angeles Symptom Checklist (LASC) and a demographics questionnaire. This study revealed that women in this group show higher PTSD symptoms than male coworkers. Level of Training (LOT) of the EMS provider did not demonstrate a significant difference in whether a provider developed PTSD. EMS personnel receiving debriefing actually suffered greater levels of PTSD than those who did not receive debriefing. And 16% of EMS providers in this study suffered from PTSD, while approximately 20% suffered from partial PTSD or PTSS. The results suggest that there are high levels of PTSD within the EMS community, especially in women. This study also suggests that CISD does not help with PTSD symptoms and may actually worsen them.