Stronger Together: a Global Exploration of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Challenges Confronting First Responders, and Pathways to Improvement

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Introduction

Across the world, first responder organisations, including police, ambulance, firefighters and emergency services, operate under increasing psychological and operational pressures (Farr-Wharton et al., 2023). As part of their core duties, they are routinely exposed to traumatic, emotionally taxing, and physically dangerous events (Alexander & Klein, 2001; Boffa et al., 2016). This exposure is not rare, but is rather an expected, inbuilt aspect of the roles. Yet, paradoxically, first responder organisations often lack the resources or structural capacity to adequately buffer the long-term mental health outcomes of this exposure (Cogan et al., 2024). The outcome is a persistent, global challenge amid rising levels of psychological distress, burnout, and disillusionment among those important group of individuals who serve to protect the community (Cogan et al., 2024; Jones et al., 2024). 

This special issue responds to this urgent need by bringing together international, interdisciplinary research that moves beyond documenting the risks to proposing and evaluating meaningful solutions. While much existing literature focuses on the prevalence of trauma, PTSD, and other mental health disorders among first responders, this collection of works aims to shift the emphasis toward innovation, resilience, and practical interventions and support. It invites diverse methodologies that explore what shapes first responder wellbeing and, critically, how it can be improved in real-world settings. 

The aim of this Special Issue is to stimulate a global, evidence-based conversation about mental health in policing and emergency response work. By highlighting both system-wide and on-the-ground strategies, we hope to bridge the gap between psychological research and operational practice. Specifically, it invites scholarship on organisational interventions, peer support systems, resilience training, leadership models, and the role of workplace culture. Importantly, it also amplifies under-represented voices and contexts, providing a more holistic and inclusive picture of how different communities experience and address these challenges.

The societal implications of this work are expected to be far-reaching. High rates of burnout and mental health concerns among first responders affect not just individual employees, but the sustainability and functionality of their organisations, and ultimately the safety and wellbeing of the communities they serve. Staffing shortages, recruitment challenges and increasing pressure to ‘do more with less’ all underscore the need for effective mental health support as a matter of public service resilience.

By contributing to a deeper understanding of how to support first responders’ mental health, we aim to promote stronger, healthier institutions and safer, more resilient societies.

List of Topic Areas

• First responder workplace culture and organisational support;
• Resilience and Protective Factors;
• Interventions and Mental Health Programs;
• Confronting stigma in mental health among first responders;
• Policy and System-level responses;
• Moral Injury and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder;
• Work intensity and its dysfunctional effect on staff wellbeing.

Guest Editors 

Fleur Sharafizad, Edith Cowan University, Australia, [email protected]

Aglae Hernandez Grande, Edith Cowan University, Australia, [email protected]

Yvonne Brunetto, Southern Cross University, Australia, [email protected]

Ben Farr-Wharton, Edith Cowan University, Australia, [email protected]

Submissions Information

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Author guidelines must be strictly followed.

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Author Guidelines

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”. 

Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.

Key Deadlines

Opening date for manuscripts submissions: 1st May 2026

Closing date for manuscripts submission: 1st October 2026