Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review

Salutogenesis and the Mental Health of First Responders

Avishai Antonovsky  1
Maurice B. Mittelmark  1 , Georg F. Bauer  2 , Lenneke Vaandrager  3 , Jürgen M. Pelikan  4 , Shifra Sagy  5 , Monica Eriksson  6 , Bengt Lindström  7 , Claudia Meier Magistretti  8
, editors.
In: The Handbook of Salutogenesis [Internet]. 2nd edition. Cham (CH): Springer; 2022. Chapter 50.
.
Affiliations
Free Books & Documents
Review

Salutogenesis and the Mental Health of First Responders

Avishai Antonovsky.
Free Books & Documents

Excerpt

In this chapter, the author addresses salutogenesis and the mental health of first responders (FRs). Research has observed FRs to be prone to psychological distress and psychopathology resulting from their repeated exposure to potentially traumatic events. Most of the literature is focused on postevent treatment. The author discusses a mental fitness model that includes salutogenically oriented psychoeducation and other activities to enhance mental fitness among FRs and build their psychological strengths as they face adversities on their job.

In closing, the author recommends that besides psychopathology-oriented programs intended for providing mental first aid to FRs and for the communities who experience potentially traumatic events, intervention also should include salutogenically based mental preparation programs. These should emphasize the strengths and resources that could help FRs arrive at scenes of disaster equipped with salutogenic resources, at the strategic as well as tactical levels.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

  • Salutogenesis and Mental Health Promotion in Military Settings.
    Antonovsky A. Antonovsky A. 2022 Jan 1. In: Mittelmark MB, Bauer GF, Vaandrager L, Pelikan JM, Sagy S, Eriksson M, Lindström B, Meier Magistretti C, editors. The Handbook of Salutogenesis [Internet]. 2nd edition. Cham (CH): Springer; 2022. Chapter 32. 2022 Jan 1. In: Mittelmark MB, Bauer GF, Vaandrager L, Pelikan JM, Sagy S, Eriksson M, Lindström B, Meier Magistretti C, editors. The Handbook of Salutogenesis [Internet]. 2nd edition. Cham (CH): Springer; 2022. Chapter 32. PMID: 36122031 Free Books & Documents. Review.
  • Salutogenesis in Challenging Social Circumstances and Environments.
    Lindström B. Lindström B. 2022 Jan 1. In: Mittelmark MB, Bauer GF, Vaandrager L, Pelikan JM, Sagy S, Eriksson M, Lindström B, Meier Magistretti C, editors. The Handbook of Salutogenesis [Internet]. 2nd edition. Cham (CH): Springer; 2022. Chapter 45. 2022 Jan 1. In: Mittelmark MB, Bauer GF, Vaandrager L, Pelikan JM, Sagy S, Eriksson M, Lindström B, Meier Magistretti C, editors. The Handbook of Salutogenesis [Internet]. 2nd edition. Cham (CH): Springer; 2022. Chapter 45. PMID: 36121995 Free Books & Documents. Review.
  • 'I've got no PPE to protect my mind': understanding the needs and experiences of first responders exposed to trauma in the workplace.
    Cogan N, Craig A, Milligan L, McCluskey R, Burns T, Ptak W, Kirk A, Graf C, Goodman J, De Kock J. Cogan N, et al. Eur J Psychotraumatol. 2024;15(1):2395113. doi: 10.1080/20008066.2024.2395113. Epub 2024 Sep 6. Eur J Psychotraumatol. 2024. PMID: 39238472 Free PMC article.
  • Mental health care utilization by first responders after Paris attacks.
    Motreff Y, Pirard P, Vuillermoz C, Rabet G, Petitclerc M, Stene LE, Baubet T, Chauvin P, Vandentorren S. Motreff Y, et al. Occup Med (Lond). 2022 Feb 22;72(2):81-90. doi: 10.1093/occmed/kqab150. Occup Med (Lond). 2022. PMID: 34729607 Free PMC article.
  • Disaster Psychiatry: An urgent field in psychiatry posing a pertinent question.
    Christodoulou N. Christodoulou N. Psychiatriki. 2024 Dec 27;35(4):265-268. doi: 10.22365/jpsych.2024.022. Epub 2024 Dec 15. Psychiatriki. 2024. PMID: 39688605 English, Greek, Modern.
See all similar articles

References

    1. Adams, J. G., & Walls, R. M. (2020). Supporting the healthcare workforce during the COVID-19 global epidemic. Journal of the American Medical Association. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.3972 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Adler, A., Start, A. R., Milham, L., Allard, Y. S., Riddle, D., Townsend, L., & Svetlitzky, V. (2019). Rapid response to acute stress reaction: Pilot test of iCOVER training for military units. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000487 - DOI - PubMed
    1. American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: Author.
    1. Antonovsky, A. [Aaron]. (1979). Health, stress, and coping. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
    1. Antonovsky, A. [Aaron]. (1987). Unraveling the mystery of health: How people manage stress and stay well. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

LinkOut - more resources