Individuals who perform rescue and recovery duties, as part of their daily work activities, confront diverse stressors that can affect their mental state and overall well-being. The study aimed to assess the prevalence and the factors associated with self-assessed PTSD, perceived well-being and burnout among rescue workers operating at Lesvos during the European refugees crisis. 217 rescuers participated in the study, while the PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C), the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and the Well-being Index (WHO-5) were utilized. The prevalence of self-assessed PTSD and perceived burnout syndrome was 17.1% and 57% respectively, while 72.8% of the rescuers reported low levels of perceived well-being. Self-assessed PTSD was positively correlated with perceived burnout and inversely correlated with perceived well-being. Perceived burnout was also inversely correlated with perceived well-being. A number of significant predictors were identified for self-assessed PTSD, perceived burnout and well-being, including: family status, age, duration of shifts, collection of dead adults or dead children bodies. The impact of the refugee crisis is visible on the rescue workers that offer rescue and first aid services. There is an urgent need for implementing effective interventions focusing on the identified determinants in order to enhance the occupational psychological burden of rescuers. © 2017 Elsevier B.V.

Mental health Psychological burden Emergency workers Occupational risk

refugee Europe human Refugees statistics and numerical data controlled study priority journal Cross-Sectional Studies Emergency Responders predictor variable Well being Index Rescue Work cross-sectional study Humans Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist Civilian Version first aid burnout Burnout, Professional male self evaluation family life female Maslach Burnout Inventory occupational psychology refugee camp prevalence scoring system Article working time major clinical study intervention study adult posttraumatic stress disorder age Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic psychological well-being correlational study disease burden disease association rescue personnel