The dangers of detrimental coping in emergency medical services.

BACKGROUND To manage the untoward effects of exposure to personally disturbing incidents (PDIs), fire/emergency medical services (EMS) professionals use a variety of coping methods. Some detrimental coping patterns have been steeped in the tradition of emergency services. OBJECTIVE To examine the effectiveness of various coping methods utilized by fire/EMS professionals for mitigating the negative effects of exposure to PDIs. METHODS To differentiate a relationship between the demographic data, traumatic stress, exposure to personally disturbing incidents, and coping methods of fire/EMS professionals, three questionnaires were utilized: a background/demographic questionnaire (BDQ), the 28-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), and the Ways of Coping Questionnaire (WOC). Descriptive and correlational analyses were used to evaluate the level of traumatic stress symptomatology associated with personally disturbing incidents and describe the relationship between the psychological health of fire/EMS professionals and coping methods. RESULTS One hundred eighty fire/EMS professionals were surveyed. This study identified the subjective stress associated with five PDIs and pinpointed five detrimental coping methods of fire/EMS personnel that were predictors for increasing traumatic stress symptomatology. CONCLUSION A significant relationship has been established between the dangers of detrimental coping methods and traumatic stress in fire/EMS professionals. Five detrimental coping methods have been correlated with traumatic stress. Three optimal coping methods offer promise in managing the untoward effects of PDIs.