POLICE OFFICE WELLNESS IS CRITICAL FOR COMMUNITY SAFEY
Experts Discuss Impacts and Mitigation of Stress On Police
Special guest speaker Dr. Tracey Goodness, a clinical psychologist specializing in PTSD with both police and the military, told the state’s Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission (POSTC) that the mental wellness of a police officer is directly tied to the well being of the community. Officers must be adjusted and emotionally and mentally stable, in order to render professional service to their communities. Goodness appeared as a special guest witness before the commission to update them on issues related to police wellness.
Goodness identified “trauma” as a legitimate mental impairment according to the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (DSM) utilized by the mental health treatment community. The condition is referenced in DSM-5 as the result of exposure through “personal experience, or witnessing or hearing about a death, serious injury or sexual assault.” Goodness said that during the life-time of a civilian, such trauma is experienced on average about twice. For police officers, the average exposure is seven to ten times. This exposure causes changes in the brain, which can result in feelings of sadness, anxiety and psychological alienation ( numbness). It can cause sleep disorder, which Goodness says, many officers try to treat with alcohol, which too often compounds matters by adding substance addiction to the mix. The complications can be fatal. Goodness explains that the impacts of untreated trauma can result in heart disease and in too many cases suicide. One in four police officers experience suicidal ideation. This far too often results in officers taking their own life. When they do, Goodness said, it generally with a firearm, where there is no chance for reconsideration.
On the positive side, Goodness said that the brain can “rewire itself” because it has neuroplasticity. However, it is important, to de-stigmatize efforts at treatment, so that officers can better leverage their brain’s own resilience. POST Commissioner Hanya Bluestone, also a clinical psychologist, supported Goodness in her presentation, adding that incident debriefs, regular exercise, personal time off for self-care along with access to professional services and peer support are essential Commissioner Calderone agreed and was critical of police leadership for not addressing these issue with both officers and their families.
CERTIFICATION PROJECT EXAMINES POLICE WELLNESS AND JUVENILE TREATMENT
Prospective Standards Examined To Improve Officer Wellness and Treatment of Juveniles
POSTC certification project coordinator Attorney Annie Lee and Attorney Anne Shefford provided updates on the on-going development of professional standards for Massachusetts Police Officers in the areas of wellness and juvenile treatment. Lee reported that her efforts have been directed at a national survey of police office health and wellness in three areas (1) health tracking (2) physical examination (3) education and nutrition. Her survey has revealed a plethora of approaches to this issue. These run the gamut from installing health facilities in police agencies, sponsoring off-site fitness programs, offering financial incentives for improved fitness conditions and making exercise and nutrition counseling available to officers.
With regard to fitness testing, Lee said that the Cooper’s Aerobic test (1.5 mile run for time) is still very popular and in use. Some jurisdictions require their officers to complete a fitness test every four years. She added that most agencies do not take a compulsory approach to improving fitness, rather they rely on incentives.
Kate Shefford informed the Commission on developments with regard to prospective standards for the treatment of juveniles. She said that there are four general areas of concern, that will need to be address. The first is use of force. Standards for application of force with juveniles must be better defined. The second area is bias, in particular, issues related to racial disparities. These are currently under examination. She discussed a policy of “arresting juveniles as a last resort” and concerns over gender identification. A consensus seems to have developed over several policy questions. There must be a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in place before School Resources Officers are employed. Juvenile arrestees must be segregated from adults, during in custody transportation and in lockup. Finally, juveniles must have full access to their care givers.
POST GENERAL BUSINESS
Recertifications Are Underway, POST FY 2026 Budget is 8.92M.
Executive Director Enrique Zuniga reported to the commission, that a recertification effort is now underway for all police officers in the Commonwealth. He reported that 7,718 officers are due for recertification, 2,773 have been recertified, 1,065 recertifications are in progress, 66 were not recertified and 21 are under further investigation. He reported that the legislature appears to be on its way to approving an 8.92M budget for the commission. Finally, Attorney Randy Ravitz informed the board that former Mass State Police Lieutenant Colonel Robert Chacket, who retired in 2020, has petitioned to have his certification voluntarily relinquished without conditions. The Commission voted to accept that.
Fourth of July Reflection
This Friday, our nation begins its 250th year of existence. Thus far, it has withstood shot and shell, bio-attack, depressions, civil war, brickbats, smears, slurs, and harangues from elitists, malcontents, subversives and enemies, both foreign and domestic, who despise its ideals, values and spirit. Yet, even in its short tenure, the United States has distinguished itself forever in history. The American people through their struggles, have affirmed, a very unique identity, not at all formed by blood and soil, but on very specific ideals and values, which have come to represent the American spirit.
So what are these ideals? There are five. First, is individuality. Best defined by Martin Luther King, it holds that people should be judged by “ the content of their character” and by no other standard. It fosters a mindset free of bias, allowing people from every background, to encounter one another, with a predisposition toward respect, unless and until, there is just cause to do otherwise. The second is cooperation, engaging positively with others, despite differences, to achieve mutual benefit. The third is freedom, the right and responsibility of each individual, to chart the course for their own life; to pursue and defend things they believe in. The fourth is stewardship; those who assume public office, do so without any personal proprietary right to their authority. They work to improve the well-being of the community, not self-enrichment, and they move one. Finally, there is the value of integrity. Simply stated, it is, “say what you mean, and mean what you say” (Saxenian). Live how you will, but don’t misrepresent yourself. This is the underlying principle of our free enterprise system. Any human being, who identifies with these five values, has the American spirit, no matter where they live in the world. However, what gives these values their specific identity, credibility and tangibility is the physical existence of the United States as a nation. Without that, these ideals would be regarded as pure fantasy by a cynical world.
The countervailing attitudes are group supremacy (collectivism), suppression of opinion and thought (intolerance), restriction of liberty (despotism), government corruption (self-dealing) and the distortion of truth (propaganda). Those who hold them, even if they were born and raised within our borders, are aliens to our national spirit. The essence of the American experience, since its birth, has been the great conflict between these two opposing spirits. From the perspective of the American ideal, this conflict was best expressed by Julia Ward Howe in the Battle Hymn of the Republic, when she described it as: “ trampling out the vintage, where the grapes of wrath are stored.” As we enter the 250th year, Abraham Lincoln admonishes us to remember, our destiny will end one of two ways: “ we will either live for all time. or die by suicide.”. In its essence, the American ideal, is the culture of life, may she continue her reign, as the greatest living hope for humanity on earth, until God’s great reclamation.
HAVE A HAPPY AND SAFE FOURTH OF JULY
MAPLE 