3 Ways to Promote Officer Wellness

Jan 24

Are you looking for simple, inexpensive ways to promote officer wellness? It’s not what you think.

We surveyed over 2,000 police officers across America regarding stress and the results point to a not so obvious solution to wellness: Leadership. Specifically, good leadership.

77% of police in America attribute poor leadership to stress.

The hopeful news here is that if you’re in leadership, you’re able to make a direct impact that doesn’t depend on your officers signing up for a class.

Bashing management is a waste of time and also I’ve heard stories of management running side hustles, leaving little to no energy for their teams. I’ve witnessed cops stiffen up when a boss with unrealistic expectations walks into the room (physical tension). I’ve sensed the dread when a chief walks into a room (bubble guts).

Still not seeing the correlation? Let’s go deeper.

64% of law enforcement report physical tension

Physical tension is not uncommon amongst police. In fact, it’s a joke that low back pain comes with the job. I mean come on! Tactical gear sucks and sooner or later you’ll have a fight or two. True, but how much physical tension is resulting from an officer holding their shoulders by their ears because they have a boss that micromanages…for years? Yikes is right.

62% of female police officers report hyper vigilance

Well, honestly, so do males. Before you dismiss this data, how many female employees are sitting in silence with bubble guts because there are sexual jokes during briefing and they don’t want to be difficult?

We anonymously surveyed a small group of 222 female police officers across America and were surprised to find that

60% of American female police have experienced sexual harassment

And, only

44% of female police say that their department add the female perspective to existing protocols

Stay with me, there’s hope. While these statistics attribute to a decrease in physiological safety and overall happiness, conversely, this means that leadership style can have a positive impact on the mental and physical wellbeing of officers!

Here are 3 ways you can promote officer wellness in your department:

Gratitude. This is simple yet overlooked. No job would function without the other; Leadership cannot function without workers and workers have no reason to without leadership. If the only communication coming from leadership is doom and gloom, employees will experience dread. Part policing is to look for what is wrong…what’s missing. This will turn into your dominant outlook as time progresses which is why it’s important to balance things with appreciation.

Ride alongs. This will be a pain in your a*s if you have a full schedule but get familiar with the streets, especially if it’s been more than 5 years that you’ve been on the road. Learn about what policing is like post-George Floyd. This will communicate that you are invested to understanding but also that you’re still willing to risk your life. Ask for the perspective on solutions to the various issues in your patrol areas.

Know them. If employees are going to do this job and risk their lives and mental wellbeing it has to feel like it’s worth it. Invest and find out about life details. Does someone have a health issue or sick family member? Do you know birthdays and trauma anniversaries? Can you tell the difference between normal and abnormal behavior from your employees?

For more training information, check out TacMobility courses: Controlling the Mind & the Machine and Burnout Recovery for Trauma Responders. We host 2 monthly virtual trainings where we offer continuing education credits to any sworn officer in the USA. Check out upcoming virtual open enrollment dates,

Citation: TacMobility: Law Enforcement + Cumulative Stress Survey | OH. [Unpublished data] Accessed July 10, 2022. www.tacmobility.org/survey; TacMobility: Female LEO Experience | AZ. [Unpublished data] Accessed January 24, 2023. www.tacmobility.org/survey.