Week 4 - Trauma of the Health Sector

Question 1

Trauma and Distress in Healthcare Professionals:

Answer 1

Public perception and media representation shape expectations and attitudes.

Angelina Jolie effect increased genetic testing but not treatment rates.

Challenges include false positives, false negatives, and lack of protective spaces for life-changing results.

Question 2

Concepts of Work-Related Stress (WRS):

Answer 2

Issues:
Second victimhood, burnout, vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue.

Burnout of healthcare professional: Prevalence:
- 14.5% report high levels of burnout
- 31% report medium levels PTSD rates
- During COVID 60.2% US, 72.5% China.

Question 3

Second Victimhood:

Answer 3

Six-stage process:
Identification, Understand what has happended and peacing it together.

Intrusive, Intrusive thoughts potentially leading to anciety and turmoil.

Support search, seeking colleges, friends emotional support.

Concern, worry about psychological wellbeing and professional status.

Survival. striving to find meaning and reason to continue on their current path or find new ways of coping.

Reorganization, integration of experience into professional identity, seeking to learn from the experience and reflection.

Question 4

Burnout:

Answer 4

Emotional exhaustion, reduced personal accomplishment, cynicism.

Risk factors: workload, personality traits, trauma-related work.

Job demands-resources model: Focus on individual, lacks organizational perspective.

Question 5

Trauma and its Impact:

Answer 5

Direct (PTSD) and indirect (secondary trauma stress, compassion fatigue).

Risk factors: younger age, past trauma exposure, workload.

Question 6

Compassion Fatigue:

Answer 6

Similar to vicarious trauma, includes secondary traumatic stress and burnout.

Risk factors: prolonged stress, trauma exposure, lack of support.

Question 7

Responses from Organizations:

Answer 7

Relationship between staff wellbeing and patient care performance.

Shift towards increasing wellbeing, not just reducing stress.

Question 8

The Role of Empathy:

Answer 8

Multidimensional quality crucial for patient-centered care.

Empathy-based strain: associated with compassion fatigue, affected by individual differences.

Question 9

Post Traumatic Growth (PGT):

Answer 9

Positive psychological change from challenging circumstances.

Factors: personality traits, pre-trauma beliefs, resilience.