Sunshine Inspector Dave Byrt believes a Victoria Police mental health review will help overcome the stigma that has stopped officers seeking help when they need it.
Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton said last week the Victoria Police Mental Health Review would begin at the end of the month, with a key focus on how officers can be better supported during and after their careers.
Inspector Byrt said the timing of the review was “spot on” as police deal with “enhanced” issues caused by the proliferation of ice and the violence it causes.
“Police are dealing with issues that we haven’t previously,” he said. “It’s [ice] increasing the number of people we have to deal with who are quite violent, aggressive and very, very difficult to manage.
“It means our people, their welfare, is at significant risk, not just physically, but emotionally.”
Inspector Byrt said he’d witnessed two close friends leave the force after stressful incidents.
“I’ve had two, very close experiences with people, who were very close colleagues and friends of mine over the years, who have had significant breakdowns,” he said.
“I’ve never forgotten it. The degree of their breakdown … will never leave me; it was quite traumatic for everyone who knew them.
“Their mental state deteriorated to such a degree they couldn’t maintain their employment, which only compounds their problems in some ways.
“They have to find their way in society after not being able to do the job they’ve done for the past 15 years.”
Triggers
Inspector Byrt said many workplace incidents can trigger mental illness, such as post traumatic stress disorder.
“It can be one particular incident or an accumulation of incidents,” he said. “We’re all individuals; we all have different coping mechanisms – we’re just a cross-section of society, this organisation.”
He said police officers found it difficult to seek help for fear of being seen as “weak or unable to cope”.
“We’re opening our eyes to these impacts now; it’s not like 20 years ago,” he said.
