Publications by authors named "Robyn Shields"

Lifetime exposures to potentially psychologically traumatic events (PPTEs) among Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) cadets starting the Cadet Training Program (CTP) appear lower than exposures reported by serving RCMP, but the prevalence of PPTE exposures during the CTP remains unknown. The current study assessed PPTE exposures during the CTP and examined associations with mental disorders among RCMP cadets. Participants were cadets (n = 449, 24.

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Article Synopsis
  • The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) experience high levels of exposure to potentially psychologically traumatic events (PPTEs), contributing to a rise in mental health disorders among their members.
  • Recent findings indicate that the RCMP participants reported an average of approximately 13 types of PPTEs, significantly higher than previous data from RCMP and other public safety personnel.
  • The study reveals a strong correlation between PPTE exposure and several mental health disorders, emphasizing the critical need for increased resources and support for RCMP members.
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Background: Nearly half of active duty Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers report experiencing current chronic pain (43%; i.e. pain lasting longer than 3 months).

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  • The RCMP Study examines the participation of cadets in digital health data collection from pre-training through five years after deployment, utilizing the 90-9-1 rule to categorize cadets into Lurkers, Contributors, and Superusers.
  • Data collection involved a Full Assessment prior to training and daily surveys during the Cadet Training Program (CTP), with mental health screenings for various disorders conducted to analyze links between mental health and survey engagement.
  • Results showed a significant amount of survey data (18,557 records from 772 participants) was collected, allowing for a comprehensive analysis of participation patterns and mental health symptom associations.
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Objective: Public safety personnel (PSP; e.g., correctional workers, firefighters, paramedics, and police officers) are frequently exposed to potentially psychologically traumatic events (PPTEs) and report posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) difficulties more frequently than the general population.

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Objective: The current study examined variations in cardioautonomic lability during the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Cadet Training Program (CTP) between cadets starting their training who did or did not screen positive for one or more mental health disorders (i.e., posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD], major depressive disorder [MDD], social anxiety disorder [SAD], generalized anxiety disorder [GAD], panic disorder [PD], alcohol use disorder [AUD]).

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Introduction: Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers self-report high levels of mental health disorder symptoms, such as alcohol use disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder, panic disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Participation in regular mental health monitoring has been associated with improved mental health disorder symptom reporting and may provide an accessible tool to support RCMP mental health. The current study assessed relationships between self-reported mental health disorder symptoms and the completion of daily surveys (i.

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Article Synopsis
  • The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) face high rates of potentially psychologically traumatic events, leading to a significant prevalence of mental health disorders among cadets compared to the general population.
  • Research suggests that increased physical activity may help alleviate mental health symptoms, so the study aimed to explore the impact of exercise on cadets' mental health during their training program.
  • Results indicated a significant correlation between higher levels of physical activity and reduced symptoms of various mental disorders, including Generalized Anxiety Disorder, among cadets from the start to the end of their training.
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Background: Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers experience an elevated risk for mental health disorders due to inherent work-related exposures to potentially psychologically traumatic events and occupational stressors. RCMP officers also report high levels of stigma and low levels of intentions to seek mental health services. In contrast, very little is known about the levels of mental health knowledge and stigma of RCMP cadets starting the Cadet Training Program (CTP).

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to determine if RCMP cadets entering training are at a greater risk for mental health issues by comparing their risk and resiliency scores to those of young adults from various countries.
  • Results showed that cadets displayed lower levels of risk factors like anxiety and higher levels of resiliency compared to young adults, with notable differences observed based on gender and sex.
  • The findings imply that the high mental health challenges faced by active-duty RCMP officers might be more related to the demands of police work rather than the innate characteristics of the cadets themselves.
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Introduction: Certain populations, such as public safety personnel (PSP), experience frequent exposures to potentially psychologically traumatic events and other occupational stressors, increasing their risk for mental health challenges. Social support has been evidenced as a protective factor for mental health. However, research examining perceived social support and its associations with symptoms related to mental disorders among PSP recruits is limited.

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Background: Public safety personnel (PSP; e.g., border services personnel, correctional workers, firefighters, paramedics, police, public safety communicators) are frequently exposed to potentially psychologically traumatic events.

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Brief mental health disorder screening questionnaires (SQs) are used by psychiatrists, physicians, researchers, psychologists, and other mental health professionals and may provide an efficient method to guide clinicians to query symptom areas requiring further assessment. For example, annual screening has been used to help identify military personnel who may need help. Nearly half (44.

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Objective: Our college name The Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) and Crest (Coat of Arms) are echoes of our colonial past, which create a barrier to an inclusive 21st-century Australasian psychiatry. Two hundred and fifty years after European settlement, this article reviews the colonial legacy, the evolution of the college and the process by which the prefix 'Royal' came to be attached. This is now an anachronism that symbolically undermines our mission to create a fully inclusive psychiatry for all Australians and New Zealanders, from indigenous people across the spectrum of cultures drawn from recent migrations within our complex multicultural society.

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Police officers, and specifically women officers, report elevated mental disorder rates relative to the general population, which may be impacted by sleep quality, policing-related stress, and social support. In a sample of Canadian police officers, sex was indirectly related to post traumatic stress, depression, generalized anxiety, panic, and social anxiety symptoms through its relationships with social support and sleep quality, but not through policing-related stress. Sex was indirectly related to problematic alcohol use symptoms through sleep quality only.

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