ABSTRACT
All crisis workers are at risk of experiencing secondary traumatic stress (STS). In this chapter, evidence is presented suggesting that crisis worker exposure to trauma is repetitive, potentially cumulative, and threatening to personal safety, health, and well-being. Professional crisis workers include firefighters, paramedics, emergency medical technicians, ambulance drivers, law enforcement personnel, rescue workers, and disaster response teams. (We have also included research findings for some volunteer groups, such as firefighters, who are exposed to trauma even though they are not professional crisis workers.) Crisis workers are front-line first responders for whom potential exposure to occupational trauma is a fact of daily life (Hartsough & Myers, 1985; Hurrell, Pate, & Kheisnnet, 1984; Mitchell & Bray, 1990; Robinson, 1986; Stratton, Parker, & Snabble, 1984).
