Dear Sir/Madam,
Thank you for your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. We can confirm that Essex County Fire & Rescue Service does hold the information you have requested.
Please see below the answer to your request.
Final response and questions:
I am currently researching how the mental health of firefighters across the UK, affects the fire service as a whole. Therefore, I would appreciate it if you could assist me with several questions. If, however, this request is too wide or unclear, I would be grateful if you could contact me, as I understand that under the act, you are required to advise and assist requesters.
- Total number of sick days taken by individual on call and retained firefighters for any reason, within the years 2016-2020.
- How many days sick have been taken by individuals on call and retained firefighters due to mental health issues, within the years 2016- 2020?
- Please categorise the mental health issues absences, as below.
- How many incidents & days sickness absence for;
a. Depression
b. Stress
c. Anxiety
d. Other mental health
e. Ill health retirement due to mental health issues.
- How many occupation health referrals for mental health related issues?
Prior to the introduction of the new HR system at the end of the 2018 calendar year, we were unable to accurately report On Call absence figures, so the depth of our answer is limited.
However, we have been able to obtain the TOTAL number of mental health Occupational Health referrals (we are not able to obtain a breakdown specifically for On Call, as the referral is for the person and they may have multiple roles):
|
WORKING DAYS LOST |
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH |
|||||
|
Calendar Year |
TOTAL WORKING DAYS LOST TO ALL ON CALL SICKNESS |
Depression |
Stress |
Anxiety |
Other Mental Health Issues |
TOTAL NUMBER OF MENTAL HEALTH REFERRALS
(WHOLE SERVICE) |
|
2017 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
99 |
|
2018 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
78 |
|
2019 |
7006 |
236 |
829 |
177 |
181 |
78 |
|
2020 (Jan-May only) |
3625 |
41 |
187 |
113 |
14 |
28 |