Final Grant Report of the Law Enforcement Assistance and Development (LEAD) Program: Reduction of Familial and Organizational Stress in Law Enforcement

摘要

The nature and impact of stress and its debilitating effect on the health and performance of law enforcement officers have been well documented. These stressors are often the result of a variety of duty-related, organizational, relationship or external factors impacting on officers. Stress has also been recognized as impacting on support personnel and the families of law enforcement officers. What is less well understood is how law enforcement agencies and mental health professionals can work together to reduce and prevent stress experienced by law enforcement personnel and their families, leading to improvements in the law enforcement organization. The Law Enforcement Assistance & Development (LEAD) Program provided for a consortium of three rural law enforcement agencies and mental health professionals to prevent and reduce stress, and to enhance the overall health of law enforcement officers and their families. The program provided a broad range of services targeted on the health and well-being of law enforcement personnel and their families. In addition, services addressed the remediation of organizational factors that contributed to the stress experienced by personnel. The overall goal, beyond increasing the health of individuals, was to enhance the health of the organizations involved. This was believed to be a more beneficial approach than a sole focus on enhancing the individual coping skills of officers.