Lifestyle Dimensions of Public Safety Personnel Families: There's No Life Like It.

PURPOSE: The nature and cumulative occupational demands imposed on families of public safety personnel (PSP) are substantial, in many cases non-negotiable, and distinct from the general population accentuating risk factors for family well-being. Despite this reality, the contributions of PSP families are not well understood, and a conceptual framework is needed. The aim of this paper is to summarize contextual factors (lifestyle dimensions) that shape the lives of PSP families; factors supported in the existing, albeit limited, body of research. METHODS: Grounded in the interpretive/constructivist paradigm, a synthesis was central to understanding the lived experiences of PSP families. An interdisciplinary research team engaged in an iterative process of framework analysis to capture the variability and complexity of PSP family life and distilled the overarching lifestyle dimensions. RESULTS: Three lifestyle dimensions-logistics, risks, and identities-emerged from contextual factors and represent distinct aspects of PSP family life. PSP families play a crucial role in that their capacity to accommodate the lifestyle dimensions (i.e., logistics, risks, and identities), without which the PSP could not meet the demands of the profession. CONCLUSION: Promoting awareness of these dimensions and their consequent demands underscores the cumulative demands that put PSP families at risk. Responses from governments, public safety organizations, and communities are required to help PSP families manage non-negotiable elements of the public safety occupation that spill over into family life over which they have no control.

Internet-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Tailored to Spouses and Significant Others of Public Safety Personnel: Formative Evaluation Study.

BACKGROUND: Spouses and significant others (SSOs) of public safety personnel (PSP) are affected by the risks and requirements of these occupations. Internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT) provides a convenient and accessible treatment format that can be tailored to the needs of SSOs of PSP. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the initial use and client perceptions (eg, likes, helpfulness, and areas for improvement) of a self-guided, transdiagnostic ICBT course designed for Canadian SSOs of PSP and identify opportunities to further tailor ICBT for this group. METHODS: SSOs were invited to complete a 5-lesson, self-guided, transdiagnostic ICBT course. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the demographic and clinical characteristics of participants. Content analysis was used to analyze the data from open-ended survey responses and interviews to understand their experiences with ICBT. RESULTS: Clients (N=118) endorsed various mental health concerns (eg, depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and relationship concerns) with a range of severity levels. Most clients identified as White (110/116, 94.8%) and women (108/116, 91.5%), with a mean age of 42.03 (SD 9.36) years. Of the 26 clients who were interviewed, 89% (23/26) reported believing that ICBT is helpful and 92% (24/26) reported finding at least 1 skill helpful. Clients provided suggestions for course improvements. On the basis of this feedback and quantitative data, changes were made to areas such as the delivery of materials, content, case stories, and timelines. Overall, the results indicated that many SSOs of PSP had positive perceptions of ICBT tailored to their needs and found several aspects of the course helpful, supporting the continued delivery of tailored ICBT to this population. However, there remains a need for continued promotion of the course and outreach to diverse groups of SSOs of PSP. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this formative evaluation provide insight into the unique experiences and needs of SSOs of PSP and provide preliminary evidence for the use of tailored ICBT to support the mental health of this group in Canada.

Public Safety Personnel Family Resilience: A Narrative Review.

The families of public safety personnel (PSP) face demands that are unique to these occupations. Nonstandard work, trauma exposure, and dangerous work environments affect both workers and the families who support them. This narrative review aims to identify the stressors that PSP families experience and the support and resources needed to enhance family resilience. Due to a lack of research on PSP families, this review is a necessary first step to summarizing and interpreting a diverse body of research. The studies included addressed structural and emotional work-family conflict with reference to PSP sectors. A framework from the military family resiliency literature interprets the findings. Factors influencing family functioning and the availability and accessibility of resources provide clues about the type of skills and supports that PSP families rely on. Meaning-making, collaboration, a sense of coherence, and communication were identified as themes associated with intrafamilial processes. Extrafamilial themes included public perceptions, a lack of recognition for the roles families fulfill, and the need for information and education. The results suggest that the vulnerability of PSP families is variable and extrafamilial resources in the form of formal and informal supports are necessary to enhance family resiliency.

Usefulness of Multisite Ventricular Pacing in Nonresponders to Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy.

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is an established treatment for heart failure patients with myocardial dysfunction and delayed ventricular activation, but approximately 25% to 40% of patients do not respond to CRT. Left ventricular (LV) multisite pacing (MSP) has been proposed as a tool to improve CRT response. The goal of this study is to examine the safety and efficacy of LV MSP in CRT nonresponders. Between January 2018, and September 2019, the Strategic Management to Improve CRT Using Multi-Site Pacing trial prospectively enrolled 584 CRT-defibrillator recipients for established indications at 52 sites across the United States and evaluated their response at 6 months using the clinical composite score (CCS). Of the nonresponders, 102 patients had the LV MSP feature turned on and 78 patients completed the 12-month CCS evaluation. The LV MSP feature-related complication-free rate was 99.0% with a lower 95% confidence interval limit of 94.9%, which was higher than the performance goal of 90%. The proportion of nonresponders with an improved CCS from 6 to 12 months was 51.3% with a lower 95% confidence interval limit of 41.4%, which was higher than the performance goal of 5%. The estimated mean reduction in battery longevity with the LV MSP feature was about 3.6 months (estimated battery longevity of 8.87 ± 2.08 years at 6 months and 8.07 ± 2.23 years at 12 months). In conclusion, in CRT nonresponders, the use of the LV MSP feature is safe and associated with a ∼50% conversion rate with a small projected reduction in CRT-defibrillator battery longevity. LV MSP should be considered in the management of CRT nonresponders.

The synergy model: the ultimate mentoring model.

Clarian Health Partners is a system that includes Methodist Hospital of Indiana, Indiana University Hospital, and Riley Hospital for Children. The nurses of Clarian Health Partners are the recipients of many national awards for their leadership and innovations in critical care. Nurse leaders at Clarian have developed and implemented a unique framework for professional development based on the synergy model. In this article, the Chief Nurse Executive for the System, Dr. Karlene Kerfoot, and Marilyn Cox, the Senior Vice President for Nursing and Patient Care at Riley Hospital for Children, describe their vision of and strategies for a new approach to mentoring professional nursing staff.