Second Victim Phenomenon Fast Facts
- If you experience emotional distress after a challenging clinical event, this is a normal response commonly referred to as the "second victim".
- Personal or professional suffering can occur as a result of providing care.
- Each provider will have unique experiences and needs.
- Providers tend to worry in predictable patterns.
- Providers experiencing the second victim phenomenon often:
- Feel personally responsible
- Feel as though they've failed
- Second guess their skills and knowledge
- Become less tolerant of normal interactions that occur outside of work
- Feel numbness or absence of response
- Common reactions to a stressful event:
- Physical
- Sleep disturbance
- Difficulty concentrating
- Fatigue
- Rapid heart rate
- Headache
- Tension
- Eating disturbance
- GI upset
- Psychological
- Isolation
- Fear
- Frustration
- Guilt and remorse
- Discomfort returning to work
- Anger and irritability
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Self-doubt
- Troubling memories
- Poor attention span
- Embarrassment
- There are some events that are higher risk for inducing a second victim response.
- Clinicians may react similarly during a pandemic or other challenging times, in which the second victim concepts can be applied.
- Peer support is the most desired form of support.
- Peer support is an evidence-based strategy to mitigate the negative effects of the second victim phenomenon and burnout.
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