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DOI: 10.1055/s-0029-1240494
Therapists' reaction to patient's suicide – results of a survey and implications for health care professionals' wellbeing
Context: A substantial proportion of therapists will experience at some point of their professional life the loss of a patient to suicide.
Objectives: To assess a) the impact of a patient's suicide on therapists distress and wellbeing over time, b) which factors contribute to the reaction and c) which subgroup might need special interventions in the aftermath of suicide.
Design: A 63 item questionnaire, characterizing the therapists, their reactions and the patients was developed and sent out.
Setting: All 185 Psychiatric Clinics at General Hospitals in Germany.
Participants: Therapists (psychiatrists, psychologists) in Psychiatric Clinics.
Main Outcome Measures: The emotional reaction of therapists to patient's suicide immediately, after 2 weeks and 6 months, respectively.
Results: Three out of ten therapists suffer from severe distress after a patients' suicide. The item „overall distress“ immediately after the suicide predicts emotional reactions and changes in behaviour. The emotional responses immediately after the suicide explained 43.5% of the variance of total distress in a regression analysis.
Conclusion: Our data suggest that identifying the severely distressed subgroup could be done using a visual analogue scale for overall distress. As a consequence, more specific and intensified help could be provided to these professionals.