36/1/4/1/201300057
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
FOR WRITTEN REPLY
QUESTION NO 474
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 15 MARCH 2013
(INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NO 8-2013)
Date reply submitted: 16 April 2013
474. Ms D Carter (Cope) to ask the Minister of Police:
(1) Whether he has found reasons for the recent high number of fatal
encounters at the hands of members of the SA Police Service (SAPS),
with specific reference to (a) their general welfare, (b) their
psychological state and (c) the (i) nature of and (ii) availability of
consultation processes; if not, what is the position in each case; if
so, (aa) how many deaths of suspects in the hands of members of the
SAPS have been recorded (aaa) in the 2011-12 financial year and (bbb)
during the period 1 April 2013 up to the latest specified date for
which information is available and (bb)(aaa) in which areas are the
occurrences highly prevalent and (bbb) why;
(2) whether a form of sickness has been detected in this regard by the
administration; if not, why not; if so, what (a) is the department
doing about it and (b) are the further relevant details?
NW633E
REPLY:
(1)(a)&(b) General Welfare and the psychological state of police officers:
Reports supplied by POLMED and the Health Risk Manager, Alexander-
Forbes, indicate a police service that is fit and well except for few
individual cases which get referred to the Disease Risk Management
programme for further handling and support.
I have already, through a number of different forums, emphasised the
need to have a concerted focus on the psychological welfare of SAPS
officials and we have begun engaging external role players with a view
to assisting us in this regard.
However, police suicide rates have decreased and more officers are
voluntarily seeking EHW interventions for the challenges that they
face both at home and in the workplace.
Resilience building, psycho- social support and Human Rights awareness
programmes are introduced early in their student curriculum and EHW
services are available to them from recruitment to retirement.
However, the violent nature of crime in South Africa and advanced
criminal activities and more research needs to be done in addressing
police psychological needs in this regard.
(1)(c) Nature of the consultation process & availability:
SAPS uses an integrated approach to Employee Health and Wellness,
serviced by qualified, experienced and registered psychologists,
social workers and chaplains. There is a clearly outlined referral
process between the different professionals and between EHW and
medical schemes, guided by the needs of the employees and their
immediate families.
Each member in need of EHW intervention is offered a 45 minute to 1
hour one on one consultation. Each member is entitled to four- six
counselling sessions and should more sessions be required, then the
member gets referred to external service providers. Members also
attend pro-active programmes presented by EHW practitioners based on
identified needs prioritised from recurring themes and trends. There
is also a Psycho-Social Network of external providers that offer
psycho-social interventions to members and their immediate families.
Members have access to a 24 â hour call centre services where one on
one telephone counselling and individual trauma debriefing is done.
Call centre staff are also available and attend to face-to-face walk-
in cases, offer standby telephone services 24/7 and facilitate
referrals based on employee needs.
Groups are dealt with through group trauma debriefing, team building
interventions and organisational diagnosis processes.
But it is my view that we need to look at how we can enhance this
programme.
(1) (aa) in 2011/12 720 deaths were recorded by IPID which is lower than
the deaths recorded for the previous year. IPID does not break down
which of these deaths were a result of justifiable police actions and
therefore the figure of 720 does not denote that police were guilty of
an offense in all cases. Nevertheless all cases are investigated under
the Independent Police Investigative Directorate Act. The figures for
2012/13 are still to be audited and will be released once this process
has been completed.
(2) Whether a form of sickness has been detected in this regard by the
administration; if not, why not; if so, what (a) is the department
doing about it and (b) are the further relevant details?
SAPS receives health reports from POLMED, GEMS and Alexander-Forbes on
recurring health themes and trends. This enables SAPS to plan and
prioritise its interventions in order to address identified
challenges. Programmes and psycho-social interventions are designed
based on these identified trends which are offered to members through
the integrated EHW approach. The 5 most recurring themes currently
identified are:
⢠Stress and Depression
⢠Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
⢠Substance Abuse
⢠HIV & AIDS
⢠Attempted Suicide
Group Interventions: Programmes currently offered by EHW to deal with
identified challenges are:
⢠Multiple- Stressor Programme,
⢠Colleague Sensitivity
⢠Anger & Stress Management,
⢠Trauma Debriefing
⢠Suicide Prevention (Choose Life Programme).
⢠HIV & AIDS programmes and support groups
⢠Information, Education and Communication Programmes on Healthy
Lifestyle
Individual interventions: Individual cases are dealt with through:
⢠One on one counselling sessions
⢠One on one therapeutic sessions
⢠Basic Life Skills and individual empowerment
⢠Career guidance and pathing
⢠Psychometric assessments for therapeutic purpose
⢠Resilience building sessions
⢠Moral regeneration programmes
Reply to question 474 approved by the Minister