ECHO PSP: An education platform for healthcare providers supporting public safety personnel

Abstract

Mental health concerns caused by and/or exacerbated by work are common among public safety personnel (PSP). Healthcare providers (HCPs) generally receive very little support to help understand and address the impact that workplace strain has on PSP mental health and occupational functioning, which may limit PSP engagement and quality of care. This study aimed to develop, implement, and evaluate a multimodal educational program to help HCPs better support the unique mental health concerns of PSP. We followed the Extensions for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) model to provide HCPs with an opportunity to learn about PSP-specific workplace demands, culture, and occupational resources. We employed an observational pre-post study design to assess participants’ changes in self-efficacy, knowledge, and connection to community supports. From September 2023 to June 2024, two cycles of 12 virtual ECHO sessions were delivered. A total of 346 HCPs from diverse clinical backgrounds registered for the program, with 71.4% attending at least one session. One hundred and nine participants completed both pre- and post-ECHO questionnaires. Ninety-six percent of respondents reported satisfaction with the ECHO program. Statistically significant increases in participant self-efficacy, knowledge, and connection with community supports were reported. In conclusion, our study demonstrated high levels of participant acceptability and satisfaction alongside improved rates of self-efficacy, knowledge, and connection to resources to support the mental health and occupational functioning of PSP. There is a need to better understand how to optimize engagement in this program and explore expanded participation modeling with goals of better supporting occupational health outcomes for PSP and potentially across sectors.