This revised guideline provides employers and organizations with concrete tools to better support employees in high-risk professions after significant events. The guideline has been developed to promote sustainable employability and to prevent work absence due to stress-related complaints or psychological trauma as much as possible.
Why this guideline?
Police officers, firefighters, ambulance personnel, defense employees, and other professionals in high-risk occupations regularly face threats, aggression, violence, and human suffering during their work. These intense experiences can have a significant impact on their well-being and functioning. Timely and targeted psychosocial support is essential to prevent complaints and allow employees to safely and healthily perform their work.
To improve this support, the Taskforce Our Rescuers Safe ARQ Knowledge Center Impact of Disasters and Crises has been commissioned to revise the guideline. This has been done in close collaboration with representatives from various high-risk professions.
A broad collaboration for a safe working environment
The revised guideline is based on the latest scientific insights and practical experiences from the field. This makes it a current and evidence-based quality standard, endorsed by a broad representation of professionals and embedded in existing laws and regulations.
Pieter Verhoeve, chairman of the Taskforce Our Rescuers Safe: “Employees in high-risk professions dedicate themselves daily to our safety. Therefore, it is of great importance that they also receive the right support, both preventively and in aftercare after incidents. This guideline helps employers organize this well.”
Fieke Bruggeman-Everts, project leader ARQ, emphasizes the importance of continuous collaboration: “With this guideline, employers can optimize their processes for psychosocial support. This ensures that employees do not remain unnoticed with complaints. It is also crucial to maintain knowledge exchange so that we can further improve support and aftercare.”
What does this mean for employers?
The guideline provides employers in high-risk professions with a concrete roadmap for:
- Establishing effective psychosocial support within organizations
- Recognizing and signaling psychosocial complaints among employees
- Improving support and aftercare after significant events
- Strengthening preventive measures to reduce work absence
By implementing the guideline, organizations take an important step towards promoting safe and healthy working conditions within high-risk professions.
Want to know more?
The guideline for psychosocial support within high-risk professions is available from today.