Healthcare Students and Medical Residents as Second Victims: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: The term second victim (SV) describes healthcare professionals who remain traumatized after being involved in a patient safety incident (PSI). They can experience various emotional, psychological, and physical symptoms. The phenomenon is quite common; it has been estimated that half of hospital workers will be an SV at least once in their career. Because recent literature has reported high prevalence (>30%) among nursing students, we studied the phenomenon among the whole population of healthcare students. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study with an online questionnaire among nursing students, medical students, and resident physicians at the teaching hospital of the University of the Piemonte Orientale located in Novara, Italy. The study included 387 individuals: 128 nursing students, 174 medical students, and 85 residents. Results: We observed an overall PSI prevalence rate of 25.58% (lowest in medical students, 14.37%; highest in residents, 43.53%). Of these, 62.63% experienced symptoms typical of an SV. The most common temporary symptom was the feeling of working badly (51.52%), whereas the most common lasting symptom was hypervigilance (51.52%). Notably, none of the resident physicians involved in a PSI spoke to the patient or the patient’s relatives. Conclusion: Our findings highlighted the risk incurred by healthcare students of becoming an SV, with a possible significant impact on their future professional and personal lives. Therefore, we suggest that academic institutions should play a more proactive role in providing support to those involved in a PSI.

Medical students’ experiences, perceptions, and management of second victim: An interview study

“…Speci cally, legitimizing when they are affected by an experience, when they feel like an SV and when they have the right to use the label. Our ndings are in line with previous studies (13,14,19).…”

Unveiling the hidden struggle of healthcare students as second victims through a systematic review

“…Students stated that the greatest support comes from their peers, followed by their mentors and, finally, their families and friends [ 32 , 37 – 39 , 42 , 43 ]. Most hospitals and some universities have support programs specifically tailored for such situations, offering psychological assistance [ 39 ]. However, as these are mostly voluntary aids, many students do not make use of them, and if they do, the support they receive is usually limited.…”

“…The study also found that it might be interesting to design interventions for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for this type of student, as the symptoms of second victims are similar to those of this disorder. Similarly, this study proposes a series of interventions that could be useful, such as psychological therapy, self-help programs, and even drug therapies, as they have been proven effective in treating PTSD [ 39 ].…”

An Evidence and Consensus-Based Definition of Second Victim: A Strategic Topic in Healthcare Quality, Patient Safety, Person-Centeredness and Human Resource Management

“…To facilitate the discussion and development of an evidence- and consensus-based definition, A dedicated ERNST working group was launched (WG2). The working group was led by two researchers (KV and MP) with experience of the topic [ 4 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ].…”