Introduction: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a serious condition resulting from an individual's confrontation with a traumatic event. Thus, this confrontation can be at the origin of a shake-up of the three personal convictions of the individual, namely the invulnerability, the protective environment and the other helping person.
Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate risk factors for post-traumatic stress disorder in Senegalese peacekeepers on peacekeeping missions in Darfur.
Methods: The study was transversal, descriptive and analytical, which took place from 19 April to 20 May 2013. It involved a closed population of 940 Senegalese peacekeepers stationed in Darfur as part of the United Nations Joint Mission and the African Union in Darfur (UNAMID).
Data were collected at the workplace using a self-administered questionnaire after free and informed consent. A logistic regression was performed to explore the factors associated with PTSD through odds ratios and their confidence intervals.
Results: A total of 536 individuals were surveyed. The mean age was 38.21 years (± 9.22). The average tenure in the profession was 15.36 years (± 9.41). The average length of stay in Darfur was 9.70 months (± 1.97). The majority of them represented the military (82.1%), the non-commissioned officers (50.8%) and most of them volunteered for the mission (77%). There was 19.8% of high emotional exhaustion. The prevalence of PTSD was 25.7% (138 individuals), of whom 30 had high PTSD and 34 peacekeepers had moderate PTSD. Adjusted PTSD factors were the experience of a traumatic situation with loss of life (OR = 1.9 [1.1 - 3.2]), a state of high emotional exhaustion (OR = 2.5 [1.3 - 4.7]), the desire to leave the profession (OR = 2.2 [1.1 - 4.4]) and recurrent health concerns (OR = 3.6 [2.1 - 6.0]).
Discussion: Post-traumatic stress disorder in Senegalese peacekeepers is linked to factors such as the experience of psychic trauma and emotional exhaustion at work. Military health care workers should look for PTSD in the face of sudden will to quit and multiple somatizations. For a better mental health of the Senegalese peacekeepers, the working atmosphere should be improved by putting in place a better communication strategy, train the health workers in the management of the stress and reinforce the device by integrating to the contingents a team of psychosocial assistance.