International journal of emergency mental health
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Int J Emerg Ment Health · Jan 2004
Assessment of PTSD symptoms in emergency room, intensive care unit, and general floor nurses.
A total of 125 registered nurses participated in an investigation of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) related symptoms and various levels of nursing care. The sample included 43 emergency room nurses (ER), 51 intensive care unit nurses (ICU), and 31 general floor nurses (GF). All participants were assessed on measures of PTSD, social support, dissociation, anxiety, depression, and demographics. ⋯ It was inferred that social support played a significant role in helping nurses cope with work-related stress. Nevertheless, the high anxiety levels of all nurses were highlighted as a concern. It was suggested that exposure to numerous traumatic experiences over a lifetime of nursing, and a lack of control over these experiences, contributed to the high anxiety levels seen in all nursing groups.
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Int J Emerg Ment Health · Jan 2004
ReviewCharacteristics of successful early intervention programs.
A plethora of terms and titles are currently used to describe early intervention programs. The terms "Critical Incident Stress Management Team," "Rapid Response Team," "Community Crisis Response Program," "Critical Incident Stress Team," "Staff Support Team," "Critical Incident Support Team," "Critical Incident Support Services," and "Assaulted Staff Action Program" are among many titles utilized to name a variety of crisis response programs. Additionally, crisis intervention services use different tactics to aim at a wide range of populations from primary victims to community groups, military service personnel, and emergency services responders. ⋯ Furthermore, no title, no matter how creative or descriptive it is, can indicate if the team or program has a greater or lesser potential to be of assistance by providing the right services during a crisis. This article focuses on the key characteristics of well-organized crisis intervention or, more precisely, "critical incident stress management" program. It also offers guidelines for identifying early intervention programs that have the best potential to provide efficient and effective early intervention services to those who request assistance.
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Int J Emerg Ment Health · Jan 2004
ReviewTheories of human violence: implications for health care safety.
Violence is a complex, multifactorial entity with no single source of explanation. Although much research is underway into the nature and causes of violence, much of this research is done in isolation and published in highly specialized journals. ⋯ The review includes risk management strategies for, and the role of, health care facilities as societal institutions to curb violence. Many of the risk management strategies noted for health care settings may also be fielded in schools, courts, businesses, and other settings in which emergency services personnel are asked to respond.
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Int J Emerg Ment Health · Jan 2004
Clinical TrialTraining-as-treatment: effectiveness of the Certified Compassion Fatigue Specialist Training.
Mental health and other service professionals who work with trauma survivors often experience the debilitating effects of compassion fatigue and caregiver stress. Leaders within the field have called for effective, empirically supported interventions for professionals who experience these negative effects. In response to the call, this study examines the treatment effectiveness of the Certified Compassion Fatigue Specialist Training (CCFST) for 83 participating mental health professionals. ⋯ A "training-as-treatment" effect of CCFST is introduced, described, and evaluated. Discussion of these findings, clinical implications, limitations, and future directions are provided. CCFST appears to be an effective intervention for ameliorating compassion fatigue symptoms in mental health professionals.
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Int J Emerg Ment Health · Jan 2004
Case ReportsCoping with traumatic loss: an interview with the parents of TWA 800 crash victims and implications for disaster mental health professionals.
The stories of survivors of traumatic events can be instructive to professionals who provide crisis intervention and/or psychotherapy to the bereaved. This paper provides excerpts from an interview with a middle-age married couple who lost two children in the 1996 explosion of TWA 800 over Long Island Sound. Their story illustrates important methods of coping with grief and sheds light on the value to survivors of recovering victims' remains. This case study is followed by a discussion about some elements of the interview that are helpful to an understanding of the grief process.