Police officers, firefighters and paramedics take blows to the head on the job far too often. Acknowledging this, The Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation published the first guidelines to follow for police officers, firefighters, corrections officers, EMTs, and others, in relation to workplace policy, prevention, recognition, diagnosis, mental-health monitoring and return to duty. These guidelines were assembled by 52 experts at The Ohio State University, a public research university, recognizes, “While addressing injury prevention, treatment and return to duty, the recommendations also recognize that better outcomes will require education, supportive reporting practices and organizational cultures that enable first responders to identify injuries and access appropriate care,” and made their findings public on October 16, 2026.

Funded by the Department of Defense, the 28 recommendations borrow from those in place for the military and in sports. They advise testing brain function prior to injury, pulling off duty those with a suspected head injury, checking their mental health, and easing them back to work. Seemingly to somewhat counter OSU’s new rules, the University of Pennsylvania reported in September 2026 that after reporting a brain injury, first responders often, “have to go on desk duty. [They] are taken out of [their] job. There are huge [negative] implications.” The OSU report states that many first responders do not report on their suspected injury due to perception of weakness; perhaps it is fear of being removed from their primary duties.