DEVELOPMENT, VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY OF FIRE AND RESCUE OFFICER TRAUMATIC EVENT CHECKLIST

Abstract

Background: Fire and rescue officers’ duties are characterised by a high level of work demand and exposure to physical and psychological stressors. A prolonged and repeated exposure to traumatic events could lead to chronic mental health issues, which may include post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). To fulfil criterion A of DSM-5, an exposure to traumatic events should be established and measured. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop a new traumatic events checklist, specific to firefighters’ duties, that may identify high-impact traumatic events which could lead to PTSD among firefighters.

Materials and Methods: A series of interviewer-assisted survey was conducted throughout the study among 90 respondents. Their responses were then analysed to ascertain themes of high-impact traumatic events among firefighters. The content of the checklist was validated by experts in related fields.

Result: A test-retest reliability study among 30 respondents produced a satisfactory kappa agreement within the range of 0.474 to 0.902. The intra class correlation (ICC) value representing the overall number of trauma incidents was acceptable with a value of 0.879 (95% S.K, 0 .756-0.941) and a p value <0.001.

Conclusion: The Fire and Rescue Officer’ Traumatic Event Checklist has been developed with a thorough process, and the reliability testing has shown a good outcome.

Keywords: Traumatic event, checklist, firefighters, validation, test-retest, validity, reliability