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Duration of second victim symptoms in the aftermath of a patient safety incident and association with the level of patient harm: a cross-sectional study in the Netherlands.
Vanhaecht K, Seys D, Schouten L, et al. Duration of second victim symptoms in the aftermath of a patient safety incident and association with the level of patient harm: a cross-sectional study in the Netherlands. BMJ Open. 2019;9(7):e029923. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2019-029923.
Clinicians may experience distress after being involved in adverse events. This study of 4369 Dutch providers examined the prevalence and duration of clinicians' symptoms associated with involvement in an adverse event as well as the relationship between the degree of harm and symptom duration. As expected, clinicians reported symptoms such as hypervigilance, self-doubt, and discomfort following adverse events. These symptoms were more severe and long lasting for events with more serious harm to patients, compared to events with less severe harm. The authors call for organizations to provide support for clinicians involved in adverse events. A previous PSNet perspective discussed efforts to ameliorate the impact of errors on providers.
