Current Issues - 2000
November 2000
Psychiatric Illness Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Claims
By the time you read this article you will have received a letter from the
Federation regarding a possible claim for PTSD. You may have noticed the
media-interest, you may have heard the gossip in the station, you may even
have responded to the letter and requested a questionnaire to pursue the
matter further. And you may still be wondering what exactly PTSD is. Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder is, in fact, a condition which can reduce a highly
competent successful police officer to a person who becomes reclusive,
withdrawn and incapable of social relationships and frequently the subject
of a medical retirement.
At the request of the Federation in May of this year, following legal
developments on this matter world-wide, our Solicitors, Edwards & Co., began
researching the possibility of legal action against the Chief Constable and
the Police Authority for failure to deal adequately with the issue of PTSD
(and other recognised psychiatric illnesses) within the force, particularly
since the commencement of "The Troubles". You will, no doubt be aware that
the Force provided no form of medical support for its members until the
setting up of the O.H.U. in 1988 and, whilst the commendable work which has
been done by the professionals there must be acknowledged, the service took
years of development to reach its present position. In addition one of the
many difficulties which members face is that on the point of departure from
the force, through medical discharge, disciplinary proceedings, natural
retirement, etc contact with O.H.U. terminates. Indeed, it was probably not
until very recent work by the Police Rehabilitation and Retraining Trust
that the full implications of the effects of service in the RUC were
realised.
Our Solicitors have advised us that as a result of the initial research
which they have carried out, they believe that claims should be commenced on
behalf of all of those members who suffered from PTSD or some other
recognised psychiatric illness. Because of the potential number of cases we
shall initially be asking all those who wish to pursue a claim to respond to
the letter from the Federation and to complete the questionnaire which will
follow.
Stress - Medical Evidence
Clearly, we would anticipate a significant response and there will therefore
be a lengthy period during which the claims will be assessed by our
solicitors in conjunction with Junior and Senior Counsel and Consultant
Psychiatrists who specialise in this type of claim.
It is likely that lead cases will be selected and proceedings issued in the
High Court. The cases will have to be supported by very strong expert
evidence as their success depends on proving firstly that the RUC knew or
ought to have known the effects which the circumstances in which its
officers were working were likely to have, secondly whether it failed in its
duty to provide training, counselling or treatment to reduce the effects;
and thirdly, on an individual basis, that the "injured" officer would have
been in a better position if the RUC had fulfilled its duty.
Present research indicates that PTSD was a widely accepted condition as far
back as the 1970's and that some psychiatrists recognise its origin in
"shell shock" after World War 1.
These claims probably represent some of the most worthwhile cases we have
ever pursued and we are hopeful that they will bring about a successful
result, not only in terms of compensation but also in recognising what many
of our members perceive as thankless years of service in the most dangerous
areas of the fight against terrorism.
In case any have slipped through the net a copy of the letter is available below
and can be used as necessary. All applications for the questionnaire should
be processed within 4 weeks of receipt. On receipt of completed
questionnaires an acknowledgement will be forwarded to the member.
The Solicitors anticipate that it will take approximately four months to
process all cases, and applicants will be contacted again at that stage.
Letter concerning PTSD is available in Adobe PDF Format
