Hotel Agalia in Murcia will host this Wednesday the 26th Day of Suicide Prevention in Security Forces and Bodies, organized by Csif in collaboration with Jupol, the majority unit in the National Police. One of the presentations of the day will be given by Laura González López, member of the Police Council and Secretary of Jupol Occupational Risks and Equality, and will talk about how to prevent police officers from committing suicide.
Do you still think it’s taboo when you talk about it? suicide police?
Well, it seems like more has been heard and spoken and spoken for a while. Also today a National Police plan sanity and prevention of suicidal behavior: In this way, specialist personnel can join many police officers. The creation of this plan was one of the red lines of Jupol and its implementation in 2020 is a reality. We are very proud of the success; however, we also have a 24-hour psychological help resource from our union called SOS Jupol, which participated in more than 500 consultations with colleagues last year.
There’s been a lot of talk about mental health lately, but not about specific groups. What characteristics do police officers have that could make them vulnerable in such a situation?
We are dealing with a profession. high emotional level and stress labor: carrying a firearm, the type of shift, the difficulty of reconciling the family, the responsibility of the police… These are factors that affect vulnerability. But all this is not the only cause of mental health problems, because then we find ourselves confronted with certain personality profiles as well as personal situations that have an impact.
With the numbers at hand, half a dozen agents serving in Murcia since 2016 have committed suicide. What is the most urgent thing to do to reduce this figure to zero?
Number zero… I wish we could. We can’t get inside anyone’s head, but we can work through the situations experienced in interventions and do emotional self-care. We can’t stop an agent from getting into people’s heads and taking their own life, but it’s important to raise awareness of emotional self-care and work through situations in interventions.
Do you think police officers with serious psychosociological disorders can be on duty?
Police don’t just have operational positions: there are also management positions that don’t require stress interventions. It will be up to doctors and psychologists to decide who and in what position a police officer with a disorder is fit to serve. There is currently the possibility of requesting adaptation for a job in the National Police. In fact, at Jupol we have had several of our colleagues tailor their work to their psychophysical situation: we are proud to help them achieve prosperity in their work according to their circumstances.
Can governments do something to stop police suicide?
Put resources and all possible preventive actions to prevent possible suicidal behavior. The National Police should increase the number of psychologists currently available. There are national territorial districts where agents must travel to other provinces to be accompanied by a body psychologist. We want enough psychologists from Jupol in all Headquarters to do preventive activities and psychological interventions with the national police.
And what do we, as a society, have to help our cops with their day-to-day mental health?
When you have a police officer in front of you, it’s important to know that he is a lively person doing his job, like a worker, a nurse, an officer, or any professional. Knowing that the work carried out carries a high degree of responsibility and must be carried on one’s back every day. The police are one of the most social workers in humanitarian aid.
Contact with murderers, rapists, drug dealers… a routine for many police officers, but does working with such people affect psychological integrity?
I can say that there are police officers who work directly with the type of work done, police actions, and not only with such people, but also with victims of gender-based violence, human trafficking, that affect psychological integrity. maltreatment of children… and it also affects police actions. The positive thing is that in some operational groups, the sensitive work they do is taken into account and there are preventive actions that are reflected in the Mental Health Plan of the General Directorate of Security.
And families?
Adhere to. Many wonder if something will happen to you while on duty. But they get used to it because there is no one else.