‘How can you not be traumatised’: Experience of paramedics occupationally exposed to suicide

Abstract

Background: Exposure to suicide is widely recognised as a major occupational hazard for mental health professionals due to the impacts this can have on their professional and personal lives. Less research has focused on paramedics, who are often the first responders to suicide-related callouts and who also have higher suicide rates themselves. Aims: This article explores the lived experiences of paramedics exposed to suicide in the line of their work, unpacking the impacts and consequences of this exposure on their mental well-being. Method: Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used to examine the lived experiences of nine paramedics in New Zealand. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews. Results: Four themes were developed: (1) It's complex and challenging work, as suicide events required different skills from those utilised in other work, leading paramedics to rely on intuition and experience to manage the scenario in the absence of specific protocols; (2) Feeling frustrated and helpless, explored suicide encounters experienced as distressing due to the high volume of calls and lack of perceived responsiveness in the broader health system; (3) The conflict between emotions and ethos, describing suicide exposure as a challenge to maintain their emotional control in the scenes, and perceiving this lack of control as a threat to their competence; (4) Living with the consequences: How can you not be traumatised?, focused on how occupational exposure to suicide impacted participants’ personal relationships and well-being. Conclusion: The challenges posed by occupational exposure to suicide can lead to negative consequences among paramedics. Research should focus on how to diminish the impacts of this traumatic experience on this occupational group.