The past decade has witnessed burgeoning interest and concern regarding the mental health of firefighters. This increased attention is due, in part, to research documenting higher rates of psychiatric problems, including depression, substance abuse, sleep disturbances, posttraumatic stress disorder, and suicidality in fire rescue personnel compared to civilians. Similarly, the National Institute for Occupation Safety and Health (2014) has identified disturbingly elevated rates of physical health difficulties in firefighters, most notably high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, death due heart attacks, as well as different forms of cancer. Despite the heightened awareness of the mental and physical health challenges in this population, behavioral research specifically targeting firefighters is limited. With this is mind, we asked prominent researchers and clinicians working in this area to present results of their early investigative efforts in our Special Issue on “First Responder Stress and Mental Health”. In this Introduction, we provide brief summaries of the studies comprising the Issue. Articles in this issue address topics of sleep, PTSD, substance use, physical health concerns, and provide assessment and treatment considerations. A primary goal of the Issue is to stimulate further behavioral research with this group of deserving yet underserved first responders. Moreover, the Issue serves as a tribute to the men and women of the fire service who dedicate and risk their lives to serve their community.

在过去的十年中，人们对消防员的心理健康产生了越来越多的兴趣和关注。这种增加的关注部分是由于研究记录了与平民相比，消防救援人员的精神问题发生率更高，包括抑郁、药物滥用、睡眠障碍、创伤后应激障碍和自杀。同样，美国国家职业安全与健康研究所（2014 年）发现，消防员的身体健康困难率高得令人不安，最明显的是高血压、冠心病、心脏病发作导致的死亡以及不同形式的癌症。尽管人们对这一人群的心理和身体健康挑战有了更高的认识，但专门针对消防员的行为研究却很有限。以此为心，我们请在该领域工作的著名研究人员和临床医生在我们的“急救人员压力与心理健康”特刊中介绍他们早期调查工作的结果。在本简介中，我们简要总结了构成该问题的研究。本期文章涉及睡眠、创伤后应激障碍、物质使用、身体健康问题，并提供评估和治疗注意事项。该问题的主要目标是激发对这群值得但服务不足的第一响应者进行进一步的行为研究。此外，该问题还向那些献身并冒着生命危险为社区服务的消防服务人员致敬。