After unanticipated adverse events, healthcare providers may experience negative emotions, such as sadness, anxiety, or anger, sometimes referred to as the "second victim" experience (SVE). In this study of 171 respiratory therapists, more than half reported they had been part of an event that resulted in SVE. Nearly three-quarters reported that short staffing played a role in their emotional distress, and half indicated COVID-19 contributed to their SVE. In line with other studies, the most desired type of support following an adverse event was talking to a peer.

Committing errors can result in significant emotional impact on clinicians. In this study, a survey of medical assistants in Germany found that poor collaboration was a key predictor of concerns for having committed a medical error.

‘Second victim’ is controversial term used to describe health care professionals who experience continuing psychological harm after involvement in a medical error or adverse event. In this study, an expert panel reviewed existing definitions of ‘second victim’ in the literature and proposed a new consensus-based definition.

Healthcare workers (HCWs) who are involved in serious adverse events may feel traumatized by those events, and many organizations have implemented “second victim” training programs to support their workers. This study sought to understand HCWs’ motivations to attend such trainings and a potential association with overconfidence. Understanding the association may help organizations develop effective training programs and increase motivation to attend them.

Healthcare workers (HCW) and patients can experience negative psychological impacts following medical error; the negative impact can be compounded when workers and patients are prevented from processing the error. This study explored interactions between patients/families and HCWs following a medical error, highlighting barriers to communication, as well as the need for training and peer support for HCWs. Importantly, HCW and patients/families expressed feeling empathy towards the other and stressed that open communication can lead to healing for some.

Medical errors may lead to feelings of distress for clinicians, but these errors can also be an opportunity for growth. This study used the Second Victim Experience and Support Tool (SVEST) and the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory to assess the extent, if any, of growth following a medical mishap. Rumination and the impact of the medical mishap were associated with distress among both physicians and nurses. The impact of the event was associated with growth in nurses, but no factor was associated with growth in physicians.

Healthcare staff who are involved in a medical error often experience emotional distress. Using qualitative methods and text mining of medication error incident reports, researchers in this study identified the negative emotions experienced by healthcare staff after a medication error (e.g., fear, guilt, sadness) and perceptions regarding how superiors and colleagues effectively responded to the events (e.g., reassurance, support, and guidance).

“Second victims” are healthcare providers and support staff involved in an unexpected adverse event and experience continuing psychological harm. While some hospitals provide formal support for “second victims,” it is frequently underutilized. In addition to implementing (and improving) formal support programs, this commentary also encourages a culture of safety and understanding of the 6-stage pathway toward recovery.

Honest apology is known to support healing from medical error for clinicians, patients, and families. This essay shares the experience of one physician who missed signs of a heart attack, mislabeling the condition as fatigue, who then apologized for the mistake. The author highlights how openness about the error was crucial in the continuation of the care relationship.

Burnout and stress among healthcare workers can adversely impact patient safety. Using data from two cross-sectional surveys, this study found the COVID-19 pandemic had a larger impact on the mental health and well-being of healthcare workers compared to involvement in a patient safety incident. Negative psychological symptoms such as anxiety, sleep deprivation, and wanting to leave the profession were all significantly higher in COVID-19-related groups. 

Clinicians involved in adverse events may experience feelings of guilt, shame, and inadequacy; this is referred to as “second victim” phenomenon. In this study of pediatric surgeons and surgical trainees, 84% experienced a poor patient outcome. Responses to the adverse event varied by level of experience (e.g., resident, attending), gender, and age.

Providers who are involved in a medial error may experience a range of negative emotions and utilize a variety of coping mechanisms following the error. The authors update their 2010 systematic review on medical professionals’ coping with medical error and apply their Recovery from Situations of Error Theory (ReSET) model. The ReSET model provides a basis to develop and evaluate interventions to reduce feelings of distress and increase providers’ coping skills.

Strategies to reduce clinician burnout related to adverse events are critically needed. Physicians in the United States were surveyed on their experiences with adverse events to identify facilitators and barriers to reducing burnout. A common facilitator was peer support, and barriers included shame and a punitive work environment.

The term “second victims” describes clinicians who experience emotional or physical distress following involvement in an adverse event. Nurses and midwives were interviewed about “moving on” from the impact of a critical incident. Five main themes were identified: Initial emotional and physical response, the aftermath, long-lasting repercussions, workplace support, and moving on. Lack of organizational support exacerbated the nurses’ and midwives’ responses.

Some clinicians experience profound emotional distress following an adverse event, known as the “second victim” phenomenon. This study of surgical residents in the US found that most residents who reported being part of a medical error had subsequent emotional distress, including guilt, anxiety, and insomnia. Importantly, while three quarters of residents reported they did not get emotional support following the event, all those who did get support reported benefiting from it.

Peer support programs are increasingly used to support clinicians involved in adverse events. This evaluation found that a structured peer support program for providers involved in obstetric adverse events can effectively support providers in short periods of time (for example, 92% of participants did not need follow-up after second peer support contact) and can be initiated with limited resources.

Healthcare systems have implemented communication-and-resolution programs (CRPs) (aka CANDOR) to encourage early disclosure of adverse events. This evaluation found that CRP training participants demonstrated improvements in self-reported empathy and communication skills.

Many hospitals are implementing programs to support clinicians involved in adverse events (‘second victims’). Researchers interviewed 12 representatives of second victim programs in the United States about the experiences of their programs. The article discusses representative feedback regarding the importance of identifying a need for second victim programs and services, perceived challenges to program success, structural changes after program implementation, and insights for success.