This article explores the predictive ability of empathy (measured by the Interpersonal Reactivity Index), emotional separation (measured by the Maintenance of Emotional Separation Scale), occupational stress (measured by the Work-Related Strain Inventory), and social support (measured by the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support) on secondary traumatic stress (STS) (measured by the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale) in hospital social workers. This cross-sectional study used a sample of 121 trauma center social workers who were predominantly master's-level prepared women with an average of 15.8 years' experience. Emotional separation and occupational stress were the strongest predictors of STS, explaining 49 percent of the variance, which suggests that hospital social workers need to be able to emotionally differentiate during work with patients and families and manage organizational stressors to minimize indirect trauma reactions.
This qualitative study examined 30 burn survivors' perceptions of the value of peer support in their own psychosocial rehabilitation. Little research is available that investigates the role of peer support in post-burn recovery in terms of perceived benefits and costs. Findings revealed strong positive views regarding the helpfulness of peer support. Burn survivors reported that peer supporters provided a sense of belonging and affiliation and gave hope and confidence. Two-thirds of the sample had served as peer supporters themselves after receiving their injuries, suggesting that mutual aid does involve reaching out to others. At the same time, survivors spoke of possible costs in helping others. Involving peer supporters in the psychological rehabilitation of burn survivors may be an important complement to the medical team.
Burns require psychosocial healing in addition to physical recovery as survivors face challenges such as scarring and altered appearance. An adjunct to interventions provided by social workers and other professionals is peer support from fellow burn survivors. But how do burn survivors view this intervention? This study examined a sample of burn survivors to learn about their views of peer support and the services of a national burn survivor organization. Outcome variables were explored relative to survivors' views of peer support to gauge its influence on psychosocial recovery. Findings suggest peer support is a promising resource in burn rehabilitation warranting further investigation.
Survivors of large burns may face positive and negative psychological after-effects from close-to-death injuries. This study is the first to examine their near-death experiences (NDEs) and posttraumatic growth (PTG) and life satisfaction afterwards. With an available sample of 92 burn survivors, half met the criteria for an NDE using an objective scale. Those who indicated religion was a source of strength and comfort had high scores on life satisfaction, PTG, and the NDE Scale. Individuals with larger burns reported greater PTG than those with smaller total body surface area burned (TBSA). There were no significant differences on life satisfaction, PTG, or NDEs when examined by gender or years since the burn injury. Elements of the NDE most frequently reported were: An altered sense of time, a sense of being out of the physical body, a feeling of peace, vivid sensations, and sense of being in an "other worldly" environment. Social workers and other health providers need to be comfortable helping burn survivors discuss any NDEs and process these through survivors' spirituality and religious belief systems as they recover.
This study explored the characteristics of children with burns who were also diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The study was intended to identify and better understand the risk factors for such injuries and to help direct future burn prevention and education efforts for children with these underlying disorders. We performed a retrospective, comparison group study of 103 pediatric burn patients ranging in age from 5 to 18 years. Forty-four children who were diagnosed with ADD or ADHD at the time of their burn injury were compared with a random sample of 59 burn-injured children without the diagnosis of ADD or ADHD. Variables analyzed included patient demographics, cause of burn, length of hospitalization, engagement in high risk behavior at the time of injury, presence of other developmental, mental health diagnoses, and/or school behavior problems. The ADD or ADHD group had a significantly greater incidence of mental health and school behavior problems than other children with burn injuries. They also had a significantly greater history of high risk behavior at the time of injury than the comparison group. Children with ADD or ADHD who also had an additional mental health diagnosis had a higher incidence of school behavior problems. Our findings suggest the need for additional studies of children with ADD or ADHD who sustain burn injuries. Children with ADD or ADHD who have school behavior problems and/or a tendency to engage in high-risk behavior may be at greatest risk for burn injuries and most likely to benefit from educational counseling or other modalities of burn prevention.
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