(1) Background: The present study aims to assess the level of professional burnout and secondary traumatic stress (STS), and to identify potential risk or protective factors among health care workers (HCWs) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak.; (2) Methods: This cross-sectional study, based on an online survey, collected demographic data and mental distress outcomes from 184 HCWs from 1 May 2020, to 15 June 2020, from 45 different countries. The degree of STS, perceived stress and burnout was assessed using the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale (STSS), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Maslach Burnout Inventory Human Service Survey (MBI-HSS) respectively. Stepwise multiple regression analysis was performed to identify potential risk and protective factors for STS; (3) Results: 184 HCWs (M = 90; Age mean: 46.45; SD: 11.02) completed the survey. A considerable proportion of HCWs had symptoms of STS (41.3%), emotional exhaustion (56.0%), and depersonalization (48.9%). The prevalence of STS was 47.5% in frontline HCWs while in HCWs working in other units it was 30.3% (p < 0.023); 67.1% for the HCWs exposed to patients’ death and 32.9% for those HCWs which were not exposed to the same condition (p < 0.001). In stepwise multiple regression analysis, perceived stress, emotional exhaustion, and exposure to patients’ death remained as significant predictors in the final model for STS (adjusted R2 = 0.537, p < 0.001); (4) Conclusions: During the current COVID-19 pandemic, HCWs facing patients’ physical pain, psychological suffering, and death are more likely to develop STS.

Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) is a technique used to deliver mechanical ventilation that is increasingly utilised in acute and chronic conditions. The present review examines the evidence supporting the use of NPPV in acute respiratory failure (ARF) due to different conditions. Strong evidence supports the use of NPPV for ARF to prevent endotracheal intubation (ETI), as well as to facilitate extubation in patients with acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and to avoid ETI in acute cardiogenic pulmonary oedema, and in immunocompromised patients. Weaker evidence supports the use of NPPV for patients with ARF due to asthma exacerbations, with post-operative or post-extubation ARF, pneumonia, acute lung injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, or during bronchoscopy. NPPV should be applied under close clinical and physiological monitoring for signs of treatment failure and, in such cases, ETI should be promptly available. A trained team, careful patient selection and optimal choice of devices can optimise outcome of NPPV.Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation is increasingly being used in the management of acute respiratory failure but caregivers must respect evidence-supported indications and avoid contraidincations. Additionally, the technique must be applied in the appropriate location by a trained team in order to avoid disappointing results.

The addition of IV training was more effective for improving some parameters of exercise tolerance and dyspnoea, although did not result in better psychological status nor it was better accepted than the standard PRP in patients with chronic respiratory diseases.

The estimated prevalence of ventilator-dependent individuals in Europe is 6.6 per 100 000 people. The increasing number and costs of these complex patients make present health organisations largely insufficient to face their needs. As a consequence, their burden lays mostly over families. The need to reduce healthcare costs and to increase safety has prompted the development of tele-monitoring for home ventilatory assistance.

The sequential activity of a RICU and a WC resulted in additive weaning success rate of difficult-to wean patients. The cost-benefit ratio of the program warrants prospective investigations.

In critically ill patients, a prolonged hospital stay, due to the initial acute insult and adverse side-effects of drug therapy, may cause severe late complications, such as muscle weakness, prolonged symptoms, mood alterations and poor health-related quality of life.The clinical aims of physical rehabilitation in both medical and surgical intensive care units (ICUs) are focussed on the patient to improve their short-and even long-term care.The purpose of this article is to review the currently available evidence on comprehensive rehabilitation programmes in critically ill patients, and describe the key components and techniques used, particularly in specialised ICUs.Despite the literature suggesting that several techniques have led to beneficial effects and that muscle training is associated with weaning success, scientific evidence is limited. Due to limitations in undertaking comparative studies in ICUs, further studies with solid clinical shortand long-term outcome measures are now welcomed.

Telemedicine is a medical application of advanced technology to disease management. This modality may provide benefits also to patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Different devices and systems are used. The legal problems associated with telemedicine are still controversial. Economic advantages for healthcare systems, though potentially high, are still poorly investigated. A European Respiratory Society Task Force has defined indications, follow-up, equipment, facilities, legal and economic issues of tele-monitoring of COPD patients including those undergoing home mechanical ventilation.Key pointsThe costs of care assistance in chronic disease patients are dramatically increasing.Telemedicine may be a very useful application of information and communication technologies in high-quality healthcare services.Many remote health monitoring systems are available, ensuring safety, feasibility, effectiveness, sustainability and flexibility to face different patients’ needs.The legal problems associated with telemedicine are still controversial.National and European Union governments should develop guidelines and ethical, legal, regulatory, technical, administrative standards for remote medicine.The economic advantages, if any, of this new approach must be compared to a “gold standard” of homecare that is very variable among different European countries and within each European country.The efficacy of respiratory disease telemedicine projects is promising (i.e. to tailor therapeutic intervention; to avoid useless hospital and emergency department admissions, and reduce general practitioner and specialist visits; and to involve the patients and their families).Different programmes based on specific and local situations, and on specific diseases and levels of severity with a high level of flexibility should be utilised.A European Respiratory Society Task Force produced a statement on commonly accepted clinical criteria for indications, follow-up, equipment, facilities, legal and economic issues also of telemonitoring of ventilator-dependent chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients.Much more research is needed before considering telemonitoring a real improvement in the management of these patients.Educational aimsTo clarify definitions of aspects of telemedicineTo describe different tools of telemedicineTo provide information on the main clinical resultsTo define recommendations and limitations

These preliminary data suggest that temporary positive expiratory pressure improves lung volumes and speeds up the improvement of bronchial encumbrance in patients with lung diseases and hypersecretion.