Occupational Experiences of Public Safety Communicators During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study
The COVID-19 pandemic created an unprecedented global crisis as the virus affected many, and lives were restricted by public health measures. Public Safety Communicators (PSCs; e.g., 9-1-1 operators, call-takers, dispatchers) faced unique challenges in their work as the pandemic progressed with shif...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SAGE Publishing
2025-04-01
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| Series: | SAGE Open |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440251329974 |
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| _version_ | 1849314671509635072 |
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| author | Emily Howe Stephen Czarnuch Rosemary Ricciardelli |
| author_facet | Emily Howe Stephen Czarnuch Rosemary Ricciardelli |
| author_sort | Emily Howe |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The COVID-19 pandemic created an unprecedented global crisis as the virus affected many, and lives were restricted by public health measures. Public Safety Communicators (PSCs; e.g., 9-1-1 operators, call-takers, dispatchers) faced unique challenges in their work as the pandemic progressed with shifting workloads as well as requirements to continue to work and to work in-person. Moreover, PSCs were the person to call when there was a medical or public safety emergency during the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic. Given extant literature already suggesting PSCs have a high prevalence of mental health disorders, we conducted an online survey of PSCs ( n = 333) in Canada striving to interpret the nuance in PSCs experiences, with a focus on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Responses to open-ended items were coded into four areas impacted: self-reported increase in stress, specific operational stresses and organizational stresses experienced by PSC during COVID-19, and the COVID-19 precautions implemented in communicator workplaces. Lessons learned from PSC experiences can be harnessed to better support essential crisis responses while maintaining and supporting employee wellness. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c14d719dff474966a228b4d321771ee9 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2158-2440 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | SAGE Open |
| spelling | doaj-art-c14d719dff474966a228b4d321771ee92025-08-20T03:52:24ZengSAGE PublishingSAGE Open2158-24402025-04-011510.1177/21582440251329974Occupational Experiences of Public Safety Communicators During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative StudyEmily Howe0Stephen Czarnuch1Rosemary Ricciardelli2 Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL, Canada Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL, Canada Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL, CanadaThe COVID-19 pandemic created an unprecedented global crisis as the virus affected many, and lives were restricted by public health measures. Public Safety Communicators (PSCs; e.g., 9-1-1 operators, call-takers, dispatchers) faced unique challenges in their work as the pandemic progressed with shifting workloads as well as requirements to continue to work and to work in-person. Moreover, PSCs were the person to call when there was a medical or public safety emergency during the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic. Given extant literature already suggesting PSCs have a high prevalence of mental health disorders, we conducted an online survey of PSCs ( n = 333) in Canada striving to interpret the nuance in PSCs experiences, with a focus on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Responses to open-ended items were coded into four areas impacted: self-reported increase in stress, specific operational stresses and organizational stresses experienced by PSC during COVID-19, and the COVID-19 precautions implemented in communicator workplaces. Lessons learned from PSC experiences can be harnessed to better support essential crisis responses while maintaining and supporting employee wellness.https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440251329974 |
| spellingShingle | Emily Howe Stephen Czarnuch Rosemary Ricciardelli Occupational Experiences of Public Safety Communicators During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study SAGE Open |
| title | Occupational Experiences of Public Safety Communicators During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study |
| title_full | Occupational Experiences of Public Safety Communicators During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study |
| title_fullStr | Occupational Experiences of Public Safety Communicators During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Occupational Experiences of Public Safety Communicators During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study |
| title_short | Occupational Experiences of Public Safety Communicators During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study |
| title_sort | occupational experiences of public safety communicators during the covid 19 pandemic a qualitative study |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440251329974 |
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