First Responders, Mental Health and Trust: Share Your Experience
Seeking mental health care can raise questions beyond finding the right provider. Will they understand the work? Will personal information stay private? Could asking for help affect a career?
A dissertation interview study at the CUNY Graduate Center is exploring how NYC first responders experience mental health care—and how trust, confidentiality and workplace culture shape their decisions to seek support.
Who may be eligible?
- Current NYC police officers, firefighters, EMS providers or affiliated hospital-based EMS providers.
- First responders who retired from one of these roles within the past three years.
What does participation involve?
One confidential, 60-minute interview by phone or secure videoconference. Participants will discuss their experiences and perceptions of mental health care, concerns about confidentiality, whether providers understand first-responder work, and recommendations for improving support.
What about privacy?
According to the recruitment flyer, the study is independent of participants’ employers, departments, supervisors, unions and chains of command. Those organizations and representatives will not be told who expresses interest, completes the eligibility screener, participates, declines or withdraws.
Participation is voluntary. The flyer states that participating—or choosing not to—will not affect employment, assignments, benefits, promotions, services or standing within an organization.
Interested in learning more?
Scan the QR code on the accompanying flyer to access the eligibility screener. Questions may be directed to Simone Schultz, a doctoral student in Social Welfare at the CUNY Graduate Center, using the contact information on the flyer.
Your perspective could help identify what first responders need to feel understood and supported when seeking care.
