Surgeons as second victims: Clinicians may experience trauma after adverse events

摘要

When discussing complications, we have traditionally focused on the most obvious victim, the patient. However, surgeons are not immune to the trauma that occurs after a patient suffers an adverse event and, in fact, they may become “second victims.” As reported in a 2015 article from the British Medical Journal, 80 percent of surveyed surgeons said they experienced at least one intraoperative adverse event within the past year that had a substantial impact on their emotional well-being. Some of these second victims described feelings of sadness, anxiety, and shame; others stated they needed formal psychological counseling.*