Second Victim Module

Develop a solution to help healthcare organizations addressed the growing concern of Second Victims.

Second victims are healthcare providers who are involved in an unanticipated adverse patient event, a medical error and/or a patient related injury and become victimized in the sense that the provider is traumatized by the event. Frequently, these individuals feel personally responsible for the patient outcome. Many feel as though they have failed the patient, second guessing their clinical skills and knowledge base. The impact can be considered in 2 ways:

Personal impact

For many people, being involved in a significant incident is an intensely emotional time. Feelings of distress, self-doubt and fear are common and may persist long after the original incident. These may be accompanied by physical symptoms, such as sleep disturbance, or difficulty concentrating.

For some individuals, involvement in a patient safety incident contributes to the development of mental health issues, including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Professional Impact

Involvement in a patient safety incident can also affect an individual’s ongoing work in healthcare. Reduced professional confidence is common, and people may make defensive changes to their practice, such as avoiding similar patients. Becoming a second victim can increase the risk of burnout, and may result in thoughts of leaving their profession.