Blue Light Emergency Service Wellbeing Feasibilty Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Understanding wellbeing among emergency service staff by mapping physiological indicators and subjective mediators of stress. An observational feasibility study.
IRAS ID
278059
Contact name
Chris Land
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Anglia Ruskin University
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 4 months, 29 days
Research summary
Blue Light Emergency Service Wellbeing Feasibility Study
Emergency service teams save lives every day and operate in challenging workplaces. It is crucial to understand the context through which to develop initiatives that enhance staff wellbeing within the Blue Light Emergency Services.
Understanding physiological indicators and subjective mediators of stress is key to the underlying concept of wellbeing. Physiological indicators of stress include heart rate variability and the body’s cortisol levels. Different individuals respond to stressors and wellbeing initiatives in different ways. It is important to understand these subjective responses (and how they are shaped by organisational/social factors) to develop effective interventions.
This study is an explanatory, sequential, mixed method, feasibility study. It will assess operational feasibility of a larger study in the Essex Emergency Services to map physiological indicators and subjective mediators of stress. This will, in turn, provide insight into factors shaping staff responses to stress to help develop and personalise wellbeing initiatives.
Six, shift-working staff from each of three Emergency Services in Essex (Police, Fire and Rescue, and Ambulance) will be enrolled. A hair sample will be collected to measure 'long-term' cortisol levels. Over a 3-day period, participants will undertake a commercially available lifestyle assessment (Firstbeat). This involves wearing a body-worn device (Bodyguard 2 heart rate monitor) and keeping a journal of significant events. Firstbeat will analyse data collected on the body’s reaction to stress and feedback a lifestyle assessment report to participants. During the same 3-day period participants will take saliva samples to measure 'at the moment' cortisol levels. Participants will then be interviewed by a researcher, with questions shaped by lifestyle assessment data. The interview will cover elements of stressors, responses and mediators highlighted in the preliminary analysis and participants’ overall experience with study data collection processes.
The study is funded by Anglia Ruskin University.
REC name
London - Bromley Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/LO/0989
Date of REC Opinion
28 Sep 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion