No description available.

While the validity of posttraumatic growth has been repeatedly questioned, the prevalence of growth after exposure to trauma is widely established. Perceptions of posttraumatic growth were examined in a sample of South African adults (N = 135). Participants completed a selfadministered battery of questionnaires via an online trauma survey or in paper format. Data specific to the nature of the traumatic event, particularly the type of trauma, time since the traumatic event, the impact of the event and perceived threat of the event, were collected along with posttraumatic growth (PTG) scores. Age, gender and perceived social support were also assessed as variables. Results of the multivariate analyses indicated that PTG differed significantly as a function of the type of traumatic event. PTG also differed according to the time since the traumatic event, although the relationship was complex and subject to the additional moderating factors of depression, anxiety and stress. Examination of the growth factors further revealed a differential pattern of PTG according to event type, and a variable pattern of relationship to social support, perceived threat and impact of the trauma. The findings supported the view of PTG as a complex, highly subjective perception of growth that may involve many levels and aspects of change. The nature of PTG is important in the context of South Africa, for the individuals, and their families, who have been exposed to high levels of crime, violence, chronic illness and road accidents, and for a nation in the process of rebuilding itself.

This diploma thesis is focusing on the posttraumatic growth in professional fire fighters. The theoretical part deals with models of the posttraumatic growth and factors which affect this process. Another constituent of the work is a treatise about psychological aspects of the fire fighter job execution. One section of the work, the empirical section, is based on the Czech version of a questionnaire method called "Posttraumatic Growth Inventory ". It is a questionnaire that discovers the level of achieved posttraumatic growth in 5 areas; personal strength, new possibilities, relating to others, appreciation of life and spiritual change. The research sample that consisted of 100 professional firemen verified the relationship between the posttraumatic growth and other aspects of respondents' lives. The research showed following discovery. The marital status, the fact if the respondent has a family, the time which passed since experiencing a difficult incident, the subjectively perceived intensity of an event, the level of distress, psychological well-being, behaviour of type A, cognitive resilience of an individual, strategy of bearing the burden of "negative view", "the concentration on a problem" and "the mineralization of threats" is not connected with the grade of obtained posttraumatic growth....

No description available.

Objectif. L’enquête Santé mentale en Population Générale a été réalisée, en 2003, par le centre collaborateur de l’OMS (CCOMS-Lille) en partenariat avec l’hôpital psychiatrique Mahfoud Boucebci (EHS-Alger). Les données portant sur le risque suicidaire sont exploitées dans le présent travail. Son objectif principal est d’étudier la relation entre le trouble de stress post-traumatique et le risque suicidaire. Méthode. Huit cent quatre-vingt-dix-neuf sujets vivant en Algérie (n=899) ont participé à cette enquête. Le Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) a été utilisé afin de recueillir des données relatives aux troubles mentaux. Résultats. 61 % de la population (n=548) a été exposée à des événements potentiellement « traumatisants ». La prévalence du PTSD est estimée à 13,5 % (n=121) dans l’échantillon global. 13,6 % des sujets (n=122) présentent un risque suicidaire. Aucune relation directe entre le PTSD et le risque suicidaire n’a été observée. Toutefois, le PTSD augmente significativement le risque suicidaire chez les non-pratiquants (OR=5.81 ; IC [1.948-17.328] ; p=0.001) en comparaison avec les sujets pratiquants. Le risque suicidaire est 10 fois plus élevé chez les sujets pratiquants souffrant de problème d’alcool (OR =10.26 ; IC [3.133-33.609] ; p<=0.0001). Conclusion. Cette première étude en population générale souligne la prévalence relativement élevée du risque suicidaire et de PTSD. La pratique religieuse est un élément protecteur contre les conduites suicidaires. Les résultats qui en découlent pourraient être exploités dans le but de fonder une démarche de prévention du risque suicidaire. / Objective. The Mental Health Survey on General Population was conducted in 2003 by the WHO collaborating centres in Lille (WHOCC-Lille) in partnership with the Mahfoud Boucebci psychiatric hospital (EHS-Alger). Data regarding suicidal risk are exploited in the present study. The main objective aims at studying the relationship between post traumatic stress disorder and suicidal risk.Method. Eight hundred ninety-nine subjects living in Algeria (n=899) took part in this survey. Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) was used to collect data related to mental disorders and suicidal behaviors. Results. 61% of the population (n=548) were exposed to « traumatic » events. PTSD prevalence is estimated to be 13.5% (n = 121) in the overall sample. 13.6% of the subjects (n = 122) present a suicidal risk. There is no direct relationship between PTSD and suicidal risk.However, PTSD significantly increases the suicidal risk in non-practising subjects (OR = 5.81, CI [1.948-17.328], p = 0.001) compared to practising subjects. Suicidal risk is 10 times higher in practising subjects suffering from alcohol problems (OR = 10.26, IC [3.133-33.609], p <= 0.0001). Conclusion. This first study in the general population highlights the relatively high prevalence of suicidal risk and PTSD. Religious practice is a protective element against suicidal behavior. These results could be exploited so that a preventive approach to suicidal risk can be put in place.

Bakgrund: Personalen är den viktigaste tillgången inom vården och därför är det viktigt att de får det stöd som de behöver för att undvika stress och psykisk utmattning. Personal som arbetar i arbetsmiljöer där kritiska och traumatiska händelser uppstår löper en större risk att drabbas av psykisk ohälsa i form av utbrändhet, depressioner samt stress och även posttraumatisk stressyndrom (PTSD). Personalstöd har visat sig leda till såväl lägre sjukfrånvaro som mindre personalomsättning. Det finns olika former av personalstöd, ute i verksamheterna används oftast kamratstöd, avlastningssamtal och debriefing. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka förekomst av riktlinjer samt att beskriva dess innehåll för personalstöd efter kritiska och traumatiska händelser på ett antal anestesiavdelningar i Sverige. Metod: Metoden som användes var av kvantitativ och kvalitativ ansats och analysen genomfördes med manifest innehållsanalys. Resultat: 28 frågeformulär skickades ut, av dessa erhölls fjorton svar och sju utav dessa hade avdelningsspecifika riktlinjer för personalstöd. Riktlinjerna granskades och tre kategorier urskiljdes; syfte och mål med riktlinjerna, förebygga och stödja samt arbetsmiljö. De stödåtgärder som framkom var avlastningssamtal, debriefing, krisstöd, enskilt krisstöd, ceremonier samt emotionellt stöd och eftersnack. Avlastningssamtal var den vanligaste stödåtgärden. Slutsats: Ungefär hälften av de anestesiavdelningarna som erhöll frågeformulär valde att inte medverka i studien. Endast sju anestesiavdelningar av de som medverkade hade riktlinjer trots att lagar och föreskrifter säger att arbetsgivaren ska tillhandahålla riktlinjer för personalstöd. Klinisk betydelse: Förhoppningen är att denna studie ska vara ett stöd för verksamheter vid utformning av riktlinjer samt vid uppdatering av befintliga riktlinjer för personalstöd efter kritiska och traumatiska händelser. / Background: The personnel are the most important asset in health care and it is therefore important that they receive the support they need to avoid stress and mental fatigue. Personnel which works in environments where critical and traumatic events occur is at a higher risk of mental illness in form of burnout, depression, stress and also post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Support to personnel has been found to contribute both to lower absenteeism as well as a lower personnel turnover. There are various forms of personnel support, the most commonly used types within operations are co-worker support, relief conversations and debriefing. Aim: The aim of this survey was to investigate the presence of guidelines and its contents for personnel support after critical and traumatic events in a number of anesthesia departments in Sweden Method: The method used was quantitative and qualitative approach, and the analysis was performed with manifest content analyze. Result: 28 questionnaires were sent out, of these were fourteen responses received and seven of these had guidelines for personnel support. The guidelines were reviewed and three categories were distinguished; purpose and goals of the guidelines, prevention and support, and work environment. Support methods that emerged was relief conversations, debriefing, crisis support, individual crisis support, ceremonies, emotional support and after talk. Relief conversations were found to be the most common method. Conclusion: Approximately half of the anesthesia departments that received questionnaires decided to don’t participate in the study. Only seven anesthesia departments of those who participated had guidelines, despite the fact that laws and regulations say that the employer shall provide guidelines for personnel support. Clinical significance: It is wished that this study will provide support for activities when developing guidelines, and also when updating already existing guidelines for personnel support after critical and traumatic events.

No description available.

Inom arbetet på en akutmottagning utsätts sjuksköterskor regelbundet för traumatiska händelser. Detta kan påverka både den psykiska och fysiska hälsan negativt samt även påverka kvalitén på vården. Psykosociala arbetsmiljöbelastningar förekommer i hög grad och sjuksköterskor inom akutsjukvård är högrepresenterade inom sjukskrivningsstatistiken i Sverige. Att arbeta nära svårt sjuka patienter som genomgår svåra psykiska trauman kan påverka sjuksköterskan negativt och en akut sekundär stress kan uppstå. Sekundär traumatisk stress (STS) och posttraumatiskt stressyndrom (PTSD) är två former av ångestsyndrom som kan uppkomma efter att individer upplever, deltar eller bevittnar en emotionell traumatisk händelse. Forskning visas på förekomsten av både STS och PTSD-symtom hos sjuksköterskor som arbetar på akutmottagningar vilket skulle kunna vara relaterat till prevalensen av traumatiska händelser. Avlastande samtal och psykologisk debriefing är exempel på två former av strukturerade samtal som visat sig effektivt som stöd efter traumatiska händelser för sjuksköterskor. Syftet med studien var att undersöka sjuksköterskors psykologiska reaktioner och behov efter traumatisk händelse i arbete på akutmottagning. Detta med inriktning på avlastande samtal och psykologisk debriefing och vilka hinder som finns för genomförande i verksamheten. Metoden som använts var av kvalitativ design. Datainsamlingen skedde via fysiska, semistrukturerade intervjuer med nio sjuksköterskor som var yrkesverksamma på två akutmottagningar i Mellansverige. Resultatet analyserades genom latent innehållsanalys. Resultatet presenterades i tre teman med åtta underteman. De teman som framkom var: Individen, Behov och Organisation. Den personliga och professionella erfarenheten upplevdes ha betydelse för hur sjuksköterskor reagerar på samt hanterar traumatiska händelser. Detta påverkade i sin tur det upplevda behovet av stöd. Även socialt stöd i form av kollegor och vänner var komponenter som påverkade upplevelsen av behovet. Majoriteten av sjuksköterskorna upplevde ett behov av strukturerat samtal så som avlastande samtal efter traumatisk händelse, främst med inriktning på fakta och bekräftelse kring händelsen. Organisatoriska hinder försvårade möjligheten till avlastande samtal och psykologisk debriefing. Slutsatsen var att behovet av stöd i form av avlastande samtal och psykologisk debriefing efter traumatisk händelse på akutmottagning var en individuell upplevelse som påverkades av en rad olika faktorer. Sjuksköterskan som individ har olika behov av samtalsstöd efter traumatisk händelse baserat på tidigare privata och professionella erfarenheter. Fakta och bekräftelse kring händelsen framträdde som viktiga för att lättare kunna hantera och bearbeta traumatiska händelser. De flesta informanter upplevde ett behov av strukturerat samtal efter en traumatisk händelse och majoriteten av sjuksköterskorna upplevde att det generella behovet av samtal efter en svår händelse var stort. Strukturen i avlastande samtal tilltalade informanterna mer jämfört med strukturen i psykologisk debriefing som upplevdes för komplex. Studien belyser ett behov hos sjuksköterskorna som organisationen inte möjliggör då det förekommer brister i form av tid, resurser, ledarskap och rutiner. / In the work at an emergency department, nurses are regularly exposed to traumatic events. This can adversely affect both mental and physical health and affect the quality of care. Psychosocial work environment loads occur to a large extent, and nurses in emergency health care are highly represented in the sick leave statistics in Sweden. Working close to severely ill patients who undergo severe psychological trauma can adversely affect the nurse and an acute secondary stress can occur. Secondary traumatic stress (STS) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are two forms of anxiety disorder that can occur after individuals experience, participate or witness an emotional traumatic event. Research is shown on the presence of both STS and PTSD symptoms in nurses working at emergency clinics which could be related to the prevalence of traumatic events. Defusing and psychological debriefing are examples of two forms of structured conversation that’s been proved effective as support for traumatic events for nurses. The aim of the study was to investigate the emergency department nurses' psychological reactions and needs after a traumatic event. This with a focus on defusing and psychological debriefing and what barriers that may exist for implementation in the working environment. The method used was of qualitative design. The data was collected through physical, semi-structured interviews with nine nurses who were working at two emergency departments in central Sweden. The data was analyzed by latent content analysis. The result was presented in three themes with eight sub-themes. The emerged themes were: The Individual, Needs and Organization. The personal and professional experience felt to be of importance for how nurses react to and handle traumatic events. This affected the perceived need for support. Also, social support such as colleagues and friends were components that influenced the experienced need. Most of the nurses experienced a need for structured conversations such as defusing after a traumatic event, mainly focusing on facts and confirmation of the event. Organizational barriers obstructed the possibility of defusing and psychological debriefing. The conclusion was that the need for support such as defusing and psychological debriefing after traumatic event in work at emergency department was an individual experience impacted by numerous various factors. The nurse as individual has various needs of support conversations after a traumatic event based on earlier private and professional experiences. Facts and confirmations about the event appeared to be important in order to be able to handle and process traumatic events more easily. Most of the nurses experienced that the general need for conversations after a traumatic event was substantial. The structure of defusing was more appealing to the informants compared to the structure of psychological debriefing, as it was regarded as too complex. The study illustrates a need of the nurses that the organization fail to meet. Deficiencies in time, resources, leadership and routines emerge.

Experiencing traumatic events has a high lifetime prevalence ranging between 60.7 and 76.2% across different countries (1). Exposure to traumatic events is associated with a higher risk for various mental disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder (2, 3), which are related to high individual and societal costs (4). The development of interventions to prevent adverse mental health consequences following traumatic event exposure is therefore of vital importance. This, however, requires detailed knowledge about the underlying biological and psychological mechanisms involved in the association between traumatic events and psychopathology. Various risk factors at different levels have already been described in the last decades (5). Biological risk factors include genetic and epigenetic variations (6), alterations in the function of the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis (7, 8) and the autonomic nervous system (9) as well as changes in brain structure and functioning (10). Psychological risk factors include impairments in cognitive abilities (11) and specific personality traits such as high trait anxiety (12) and maladaptive emotion regulation (13). Social risk factors include impaired interpersonal relations and stigmatization (14, 15). Further, clinical risk factors such as mental health history as well as previous traumatic experiences may also increase the risk for psychopathology after trauma exposure (16). Most of these factors are supposed to be associated with risk of psychopathology independent of the type of traumatic event. However, it is likely that specific traumatic events are associated with different constellations of risk factors, which has so far received little attention in the existing literature. Importantly, traumatic events explicitly include not only events that are personally experienced but also events that are witnessed by an observer (17). This includes witnessing someone being seriously hurt, seeing atrocities or witnessing dead bodies. Witnessed traumatic events are among the most frequent traumatic experiences (1). They are also of high current relevance in the contexts of natural disasters, terrorist attacks and military crises (16, 18, 19). The fact that individuals can develop psychopathological reactions to events that are actually experienced by others raises the question how the suffering of others is being processed. Based on theoretical models and findings from social cognition and neuroscience research, we propose that socio-affective and socio-cognitive mechanisms are involved in the processing and pathological consequences of witnessing traumatic events and could contribute to a better understanding of adverse reactions to this type of traumatic events.

Denna uppsats undersöker effekter av psykologisk debriefing och avlastningssamtal efter traumatiska händelser hos brandpersonal. Enkätstudiens fokus låg på brandpersonalens känslomässiga påverkan av traumatiska händelser i arbetet. Femtionio personer deltog i enkätstudien, varav 91 procent upplevt en traumatisk händelse. Det fanns inga signifikanta skillnader i posttraumatiska stressreaktioner och psykologiskt välbefinnande hos brandmän efter traumatisk händelse beroende av huruvida brandmännen deltagit i tidig intervention i form av avlastningssamtal, psykologisk debriefing eller inte medverkat i någon form av tidig intervention. / This study investigated the effectiveness of psychological debriefing after traumatic events among professional firefighters. We sought to understand the emotional effect of traumatic events in daily work. To examine this, a survey was conducted with 59 firefighters and among these 91 percent had experienced a traumatic event. There were no significant difference in post trauma reactions and psychological well being among firefighters after traumatic event depending on participate or not participate in psychological debriefing.