Several Durham police officers diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) say they believe the service isolated them from the day they went on mental health leave and has not provided them any meaningful support.
They say there’s a workplace culture where confidential medical information is mismanaged and senior management imply there are members who lie about having mental health injuries. Officers who return are nicknamed “broken toys” and their careers are never the same, several said.
Chief Peter Moreira said the service prioritizes mental health support. He says he manages serious staffing pressures caused by the number of members on leave without stigmatizing them.
But all six officers CBC News spoke with said DRPS hasn’t reached out to them in a supportive way.
“Why are we left on an island to rot and feel like all this work we’ve done over the years was pointless?” said Joseph, which is a pseudonym.
CBC News is using pseudonyms to protect all the officers’ identities as they fear retaliation for speaking with the media.
Moreira said he has never used the phrase “broken toys” and hasn’t heard it within the service since he was appointed in March 2023.
“Nor would I tolerate it if I did,” the chief said in a one-on-one interview.
Moreira said he is disappointed to hear what officers told CBC News, and he wants to learn more about these officers’ experiences.
“I’m willing to learn. I’m willing to listen,” he said.
Private medical info shared, officers allege
The most damning allegation involves how the service handles officers’ private medical information.
Four officers told CBC News that members’ confidential information is shared within the workplace with people who should not have access to that information.
In one example, CBC News viewed an internal document that shows one officer’s PTSD diagnosis was known by at least two members of the service who did not have an obvious reason to know his diagnosis — just a day after he filed his WSIB application.
This officer did not file a complaint or otherwise ask the DRPS about this. To protect the officer’s identity, CBC News did not provide Moreira details about the specific incident.
The chief said he would need more details to comment on any particular case, but he said he’s not aware of officers’ medical information being shared. He said medical files are restricted to wellness specialists who work for the service.
“If information has been shared that’s inappropriate, there’s mechanisms by which [officers] can report that and we would investigate and look into it,” he said.
Staffing prioritized over members’ well-being
Beyond privacy concerns, officers described a culture within the DRPS that made it difficult for them to decide to go on leave in the first place.
Some of the six officers CBC News spoke with say they believe internal stigma has worsened since Moreira became chief.
During platoon meetings, two officers said senior officers implied members shouldn’t be going on leave because it’s causing staffing shortages.
“It wasn’t said in a tone where they were compassionate or sympathetic,” said Kevin. “It was like, ‘no, they’re full of shit.’”
Moreira said there is an “undeniable” staffing pressure linked to the number of members who are off. He said the service has added almost 300 officers over the past three years to deal with this issue.
“I recognize that we have a portion of our workforce that isn’t here because they’re trying to get better, and I respect that,” he said.
“I haven’t stigmatized people … I’ve actually dedicated more people to our frontline than ever before.”
Still, several officers told CBC News they think DRPS is prioritizing staffing over members’ well-being.
“They’re trying to operate, but they’re doing it the wrong way, and they’re creating terrible morale in the entire service,” Kevin said.
No longer part of the policing ‘family’
Officers said members who return from mental health leave are considered liabilities. They said they believe members are no longer respected and face an environment of mistrust
“You’re not part of the police quote — unquote family of blue anymore,” said Joseph.
Chris said he saw repeatedly how members were “made fun of [and] called names” once they identified they had a mental health issue.
Some struggling members continue working for longer than they should because they fear how management will react, he said.
Chris said he continued working for some time, against the advice of his psychologist. He recalled breaking down when he was alone at work, wrestling with whether he should go on leave.
“It’s a very hard thing to make that decision, because you know how command views those members in the first place, and you know that you’re going to join those members now,” he said.
Service prioritizes mental health supports, chief says
Moreira said he is concerned officers may not seek help when they need it, but he added “people routinely ask for help” within the service.
He said DRPS has robust wellness services and described a culture where mental health is spoken about “in a very positive way.”
Moreira said members get unlimited access to psychological services. He said he also speaks about his own journey with mental health during a family night held for recruits to discuss mental health and resiliency. The service also assigns peer support to all recruits, he said.
“We invest and normalize it right from the beginning,” he said.
‘There’s no contact unless it’s negative’
While the chief said there are supports in place for members, the officers CBC News spoke with described feeling almost totally isolated from the service once they went on leave.
Exempting a few colleagues, all six officers said there has been no supportive contact from their supervisors or the service overall to check in on how they’re doing since they went on leave.
Joseph said he received a medal commemorating his years of service in the mail — with no other contact.
“That was heartbreaking for me to know that’s the value I have for my police service … just slap a stamp on a medal and send it to me,” he said.
“Not even a nice note from my inspector, nothing. They just threw it in a box.”
Andrew Tummonds, president of the Durham Regional Police Association, declined an interview. In a statement, he said while there has been “some progress in the recent past,” the service needs to do more to communicate compassionately and sensitively with members on leave.
“The service must move from a culture of suspicion towards mental health claims to one of support,” Tummonds said.
Police services may hesitate to reach out because some members react negatively to contact during recovery, said Mark Baxter, president of the Police Association of Ontario.
He said he recommends police services make initial contact to gauge the officer’s comfort level. But none of the DRPS officers CBC News spoke with described having such an interaction.
“There’s no contact, unless it’s negative,” said Kevin.
DRPS working to contact more officers on leave: chief
The WSIB website reads employers are responsible for “maintaining appropriate, and regular, communication with your employee throughout their recovery and return to work.”
Moreira said DRPS has a dedicated “reintegration officer” who communicates with members on leave.
“We are encouraging those contacts,” he said. “We are building our capacity in this area to contact as many people as is humanly possible.”
The officers were split on whether they still want the service to reach out.
Early on, Chris said he wanted that contact. Now, he said, his stomach turns when he sees a police cruiser.
“I don’t want to have anything to do with the police service,” he said.
Kevin said the lack of contact reflects the service’s priorities.
“They only care about having the numbers to fill the spots,” he said. “They don’t care about their people.”
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