Local experts urge culture shift to help responders struggling with PTSD, mental trauma
FOUR REPORTER SHELDON INGRAM. WE’VE LEARNED THAT FIRST RESPONDERS INABILITY TO COPE WITH MENTAL TRAUMA CAN LEAD TO DEVASTATING CIRCUMSTANCES LIKE PTSD, ALCOHOLISM, AND EVEN SUICIDE. THEY EXPLAIN WHY IT’S IMPORTANT TO CHANGE THAT CULTURE. APRIL 4TH, 2009. THE HORRIFIC ENCOUNTER IN STANTON HEIGHTS THREE PITTSBURGH POLICE OFFICERS WERE SHOT AND KILLED WHEN RESPONDING TO A DOMESTIC CALL. ERIC KELLY. PAUL ZULLO AND STEVEN MALEY THAT FRIGHTFUL INCIDENT UNFOLDED IN FRONT OF PARAMEDIC JOHN ATKINSON. HE WAS FROZEN AND HELPLESS. WE HAD THREE POLICE OFFICERS WHO WERE SHOT AND GRAVELY INJURED AND WE COULDN’T GET TO THEM BECAUSE THE SCENE WASN’T SAFE. IT WAS AN ACTIVE SHOOTER SITUATION. THE GUNMAN WAS ACTIVELY FIRING AT THESE OFFICERS, AND I WAS PROBABLY 60 OR 70FT AWAY. AND I COULD DO NOTHING TO HELP. RETIRED PITTSBURGH POLICE OFFICER MARK KNEEBONE WAS DEEPLY SHAKEN BY THE DEATH OF THE OFFICERS. HE WAS ESPECIALLY CLOSE TO STEVEN MALEY. PAUL ARRIVED FIRST. HE TOOK FIRE AS SOON AS HE. PRETTY MUCH AS SOON AS HE CAME TO THE DOOR, HE KNOCKED ON THE DOOR AND THEY OPENED THE DOOR AND THE GUY STARTED SHOOTING HIM RIGHT THEN AND THERE. HE WAS EXECUTED. STEVE MALEY BACKED HIM UP. HE GOT EXECUTED. AND THEN ERIC KELLY SHOWED UP BECAUSE HE WAS DRIVING HOME OFF DUTY AND HEARD THE CALL, AND HE RESPONDED AND GOT SHOT BEFORE HE EVEN GOT OUT OF HIS CAR. AND HE ENDED UP BLEEDING OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET CAUSE HE COULDN’T GET TO HIM. TWO OF THEM. I HAD TO LOOK AT THEIR NAME TAGS TO SEE WHO THEY WERE, BECAUSE THEY SUSTAINED SIGNIFICANT FACIAL TRAUMA. THAT’S THAT’S REALLY HARD TO DEAL WITH. ANOTHER TRAUMATIC EVENT, THIS ONE IN SHADYSIDE LAST YEAR. FIREFIGHTER LIEUTENANT DAVID HAMBURGER RESPONDED TO A MEDICAL CALL OF AN INJURED INFANT. AS IT TURNS OUT, THE CHILD WAS MURDERED. I DISCOVERED A SIX WEEK OLD INFANT WITH SEVERE HEAD TRAUMA. HIS HEAD LOOKED LIKE IT HAD BEEN ENLARGED BY A THIRD. AND THEN PITTSBURGH POLICE OFFICER STEVEN HARRIS RECALLS WHEN HE RECENTLY TALKED A PERSON OUT OF JUMPING OFF A BRIDGE. I HAD A TROUBLED CHILD THAT DIDN’T KNOW IF THEY WERE A BOY OR A GIRL, AND THEY WANTED TO JUMP OFF OF A BRIDGE. THIS PERSON’S BEEN EITHER MISGENDERED OR MADE FUN OF TO THE EXTENT THAT THEY’RE A CHILD, AND THEY THINK THAT THE ANSWER TO THEIR PROBLEMS, THIS PROBLEM, SPECIFICALLY IS TO JUMP OFF A BRIDGE. AND I THINK YOU TAKE THAT HOME WITH YOU. ATKINSON, HAMBURGER AND HARRIS ALL FOUND A WAY TO GET HELP AFTER THEY WERE MENTALLY AND EMOTIONALLY SHAKEN. IN THIS CASE. HE STARTED HIS OWN PODCAST TO ADDRESS MENTAL HEALTH AT HIS WORST TIME. HE SAYS HE DRANK UP TO A HALF GALLON OF LIQUOR EVERY DAY. HE EVEN PULLED OUT HIS GUN TO COMMIT SUICIDE. I’M AN INDIVIDUAL THAT HAS ISSUES THAT’S NOT AFRAID TO TALK ABOUT HIS ISSUES, BECAUSE THAT’S HOW PEOPLE GET HELP. THAT’S HOW PEOPLE HEAL BY COMMUNICATION, BY TALKING, BY SHARING THEIR CALLS THAT AT THE TIME. ARE RATHER ROUTINE FOR US. BUT I THINK YOU STILL PICK UP SOME TRAUMA FROM THESE CALLS, REGARDLESS OF HOW ROUTINE THEY MAY APPEAR AT THE MOMENT. BUT FIRST RESPONDERS SAY THERE ARE STILL TOO MANY PEOPLE IN THEIR PROFESSION TOO ASHAMED TO GET HELP. IS THERE AN ISSUE WITH PEOPLE HOLDING THIS STUFF IN? SURE. IS THAT IS THAT A REAL THING? THAT’S A VERY REAL THING. IT AT FIRST GLANCE, IT’S VERY HARD TO SAY THAT I HAVE A PROBLEM. MAYBE WE FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, WE’RE NOT DOING SO WELL AFTER A CALL. IT’S KIND OF HARD TO ADMIT THAT TO YOUR PARTNER OR YOUR YOUR COWORKERS, RIGHT? AS A FIRST RESPONDER, WE KIND OF PUT OURSELVES IN THIS SEGMENT OF SOCIETY THAT WE HAVE TO BE STRONG. WE CAN’T SHOW WEAKNESS. ASKING FOR HELP IS WEAKNESS. THERAPIST DOCTOR SHEILA ROTH TREATS ONLY FIRST RESPONDERS. SHE SAYS EVEN MUNDANE CALLS CAN STACK UP AND BECOME A PROBLEM. IT MAY NOT BE THE GORIEST SCENE THAT’S TRIGGERING YOU. IT MAY BE THE ELDERLY PERSON THAT YOU’RE CALLED TO HELP WHO HAS NO FOOD. IF YOU DON’T DEAL WITH THE MENTAL HEALTH ASPECT OF OUR OUR CAREER, IT CAN COME UP AND AND GET YOU A. MENTAL HEALTH IS VERY IMPORTANT AND YOU DON’T HAVE TO KEEP THE NEED FOR ANY KIND OF MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES A SECRET. PEGGY KEARNEY IS A MEMBER OF THE PITTSBURGH CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS MANAGEMENT TEAM. THEY OFTEN CONNECT WITH FIRST RESPONDERS. SOON AFTER A TRAUMATIC INCIDENT. THEY TRY AND TAMP THEM DOWN. WELL, THEY DON’T GO AWAY. SO WE FIGHT. THEY FIGHT IT. AND THE MORE YOU’RE FIGHTING IT, THE HUMAN BEING, THE MORE THEY’RE GOING TO OCCUR. BUT KEARNEY SAYS WHILE MANY STILL HIDE THEIR EMOTIONAL TRAUMA, MORE AND MORE ARE STARTING TO ADDRESS THEIR MENTAL HEALTH. I HAVE SEEN AN INCREASE IN CALLS AND AN INCREASE IN RECOGNITION OF IT’S SAFE TO GO AHEAD AND DO THIS. IT’S SAFE TO TALK TO SOMEONE. THERE ARE VALUABLE RESOURCES FOR FIRST RESPONDERS WHO DO NEED HELP WITH THEIR MENTAL HEALTH. IT INCLUDES TRADITIONAL THERAPY AND EVEN TECHNOLOGY. THAT IS THE FOCUS OF OUR FINAL REPORT COVERING ALLEGHENY COUNTY IN PITTSBURGH, SHELDON INGRAM PITTSBURGH’S ACTION NEWS FOUR. AS SHELDON MENTIONED, THE THIRD AND FINAL INSTALLMENT OF THE WEIGHT OF THE CALL WILL FOCUS ON THE TREATMENT OPTIONS FOR FIRST RESP
Local experts urge culture shift to help responders struggling with PTSD, mental trauma
Updated: 6:47 PM EST Nov 11, 2025
Behavioral experts say a culture shift must happen within the ranks of first responders, and how they cope with post-traumatic stress disorder and mental trauma.Retired Pittsburgh police officer Mark Kneebone says he nearly committed suicide before he retired in 2019, while drinking up to a half-gallon of alcohol a day.He says the first step to getting help is breaking through that first barrier.”As a first responder, we kind of put ourselves in this segment of society that we have to be strong, we can’t show weakness, asking for help is weakness,” Kneebone said.Peggy Kearney, a member of the Pittsburgh Critical Incident Stress Management Team, who responds to first responders soon after traumatic incidents, says first responders need to understand that they’re human, and it’s OK to ask for help.”Mental health is very important, and you don’t have to keep the need for any kind of mental health services a secret,” Kearney said.Kearney says a culture shift has started in recent years, where more and more first responders are taking that first step.Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that first responders are more likely to commit or attempt suicide than the rest of the general public due to the heavy stress associated with their professions.That is the focus in Part 2 of a three-part series that explores the mental trauma of first responders.READ PART 1 OF THIS STORY BELOW: Looking for more news in your area | Subscribe to the WTAE YouTube Channel
PITTSBURGH —
Behavioral experts say a culture shift must happen within the ranks of first responders, and how they cope with post-traumatic stress disorder and mental trauma.
Retired Pittsburgh police officer Mark Kneebone says he nearly committed suicide before he retired in 2019, while drinking up to a half-gallon of alcohol a day.
He says the first step to getting help is breaking through that first barrier.
“As a first responder, we kind of put ourselves in this segment of society that we have to be strong, we can’t show weakness, asking for help is weakness,” Kneebone said.
Peggy Kearney, a member of the Pittsburgh Critical Incident Stress Management Team, who responds to first responders soon after traumatic incidents, says first responders need to understand that they’re human, and it’s OK to ask for help.
“Mental health is very important, and you don’t have to keep the need for any kind of mental health services a secret,” Kearney said.
Kearney says a culture shift has started in recent years, where more and more first responders are taking that first step.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that first responders are more likely to commit or attempt suicide than the rest of the general public due to the heavy stress associated with their professions.
That is the focus in Part 2 of a three-part series that explores the mental trauma of first responders.
READ PART 1 OF THIS STORY BELOW:
Looking for more news in your area | Subscribe to the WTAE YouTube Channel