Debriefing Program to Start : Firefighters Soon Will Be Given Stress Relief

Los Angeles firefighters and paramedics who experience exceptional emotional turmoil because of the wrenching incidents encountered in their jobs will soon have somewhere to seek relief from the stress they feel.

The city Fire Department will implement its new Critical Incident Stress Debriefing Program on Tuesday. Its aim is to help emergency personnel cope by identifying typical reactions to stress and defusing them through debriefing.

The department’s psychologist, Russell Boxley, told the Fire Commission on Thursday that the program, which he helped develop over the last six months, is “probably the largest in the country” with a team of about 60 specially trained department volunteers.

‘Critical Incident’ Witnesses

Members of the team will meet with firefighters and paramedics who have been at the scene of a “critical incident,” such as a plane crash, death of a department member, the death of a child through violence or neglect, or where the emergency workers themselves have been placed in danger.

Sometimes firefighters and paramedics are emotionally numbed by their traumatic experiences, fire officials said. Or they feel isolated, do not sleep well, mentally relive the shocking events over and over and become anxious and fearful about returning to work.

“Most of these (adverse) reactions disappear within three to four weeks, but a few may continue,” the Fire Department said in a booklet explaining the program. “Timely psychological consultations have a great potential to substantially reduce or eliminate long-term psychological and physical symptoms.”

Also part of the new program is an educational effort to tell firefighters and paramedics about the symptoms of stress and how to cope with them. Those suffering stress may be informally debriefed at the scene of an incident or formally “defused” at a special meeting later.

‘Talk Out’ Problems

Another program is also being offered to help members deal with personal problems through peer support. It provides a way to “talk out” problems with specially trained co-workers.

In a related development, Fire Chief Donald O. Manning reported Thursday that the Fire Department has experienced a “dramatic increase” in psychologically related disability claims.

A report, requested earlier by the Fire Commission, showed that the department’s medical liaison unit has been monitoring 32 claims of stress-related disability from Jan. 1, 1987, through Feb. 8 this year--a 78% increase over the total in 1985.

Of the 32 claims, the department said 16 were now being considered in workmen’s compensation or disability pension proceedings, while 10 had been ruled against and six had been supported. The report did not suggest a possible reason for the increase.

And Kenneth E. Buzzell, first vice president of the United Fire Fighters of Los Angeles City, cautioned the commissioners to study the report carefully before reaching any conclusions. He noted that one of the firefighters included in the 32 cases had been shot while on duty.

On the motion of Commission President Harold J. Kwalwasser, the commissioners asked the Fire Department to report back in six to eight weeks on the origin of the stress-related claims.