A psycho-social therapeutic group work programme preventing the onset of post-traumatic stress disorder among police officials attached to the specialised units in the South African police service

Abstract

This article focuses on the development of a psycho-social therapeutic programme (PTP) for police officials attached to the specialised units in the North West province. The objective is to prevent the onset of post-traumatic stress disorder and the development of trauma-related stress symptoms soon after exposure to a traumatic event. The main focus of this article is on the themes and contents of the designed PTP. The themes of the programme are schematically presented, after which it is discussed in detail according to the subject, aim and content.