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Anti-N-methyl-d-aspartate-receptor (NMDAR) encephalitis is an uncommon autoimmune disorder with a wide spectrum of neuropsychiatric symptoms. There is a great requirement to emphasize the importance of a multidisciplinary team approach in the process of diagnosis and treatment of the potentially fatal condition, including psychiatrists, neurologists, gynaecologists and intensivists. Physicians must be aware that psychiatric and neurological disorders, which are typical features for NMDAR encephalitis in young women with ovarian tumours, may progress into status epilepticus and respiratory insufficiency. This disease can only be successfully treated with prompt surgical intervention and an early implementation of a wide array of immunosuppressive therapies. Optimal timing of initiation of therapeutic plasma exchange, as well as duration of treatment necessary to achieve desirable outcomes in patients with NMDAR remains unknown. The present case report aims to raise awareness about the importance of early implementation of this potentially life-saving therapy and continuing the treatment courses until full subsidence of symptoms.

Background High levels of stress among anaesthesiology and intensive care unit workers are commonly reported. Personnel in these units are prone to stress because of specific characteristics of their work. Their development of skills to cope with stress may affect their psychophysical condition and, consequently, patient safety. Objectives The aim of this study was to define the coping styles of anaesthesiology and intensive care unit personnel and to evaluate the connections between the work environment as well as personal characteristics and the dominant coping styles. Methods Anaesthesiology and intensive care unit personnel from 15 selected Polish hospitals were surveyed using the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations, which examines task‐oriented coping, emotion‐oriented coping and avoidance‐oriented coping. The Perceived Stress Scale was used to assess stress levels. Results The analysis included 425 successfully completed surveys. The examined population was divided into two groups: Group N comprised 311 nurses (73.18%) and group P comprised 114 physicians (26.82%). For 167 participants (39.29%), the dominant coping style was defined. The most common style was the task‐oriented coping style; it was dominant in 96 participants (22.58% of the entire examined population). This style was significantly predominant among men. The domination of some coping styles coexisted with marital status, number of children and financial situation. The occurrence of different coping styles did not significantly differ among workers at different‐sized hospitals, with different job seniority or with different living locations. Perceived stress was correlated with all coping styles. Conclusions Work‐related stress among anaesthesiology and intensive care unit workers is an important problem. Further investigations of stress levels and the causes and effects of stress in this population are necessary.

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