Crossfire: the emotional cost of Military Police work

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the affective cost of work for military police officers in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro. METHOD: Cross-sectional study carried out with 446 military police officers, of both sexes, from 5 military police battalions in Rio de Janeiro. A sociodemographic, work and health conditions questionnaire and the Human Cost at Work Assessment Scale were used. Data were organized, processed, and analyzed using the software Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 13.1. RESULTS: The affective cost of work was considered serious to critical among military police officers, with a statistically significant association being observed between the assessment of serious affective cost and medical leave due to bipolar disorder (p = 0.035), cognitive changes in perception (p = 0.009), attention (p = 0.053) and memory (p = 0.015), age (p < 0.001), working time (p < 0.001), and sleep (p < 0.034). CONCLUSION: It is essential to promote a healthy environment, raise awareness about the importance of mental health, and seek professional help when necessary. Ensuring police officers' mental health is critical to their happiness and quality of life, and to their ability to perform their duties effectively. This has positive consequences for society, underscoring the urgent need for ongoing interventions and support in this area.