The second victims’ experience and related factors among medical staff

• Published date: 03 June 2019
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJWHM-07-2018-0087
• Pages: 134-145
• Date: 03 June 2019
• Author: Amjad Mohamadi-Bolbanabad,Ghobad Moradi,Bakhtiar Piroozi,Hossein Safari,Heshmatollah Asadi,Karim Nasseri,Hiwa Mohammadi,Abdorrahim Afkhamzadeh
• Subject Matter: Health & social care,Healthcare management,Hr & organizational behaviour,Human resource policy,Employee welfare

The second victims’experience

and related factors among

medical staff

Amjad Mohamadi-Bolbanabad, Ghobad Moradi and Bakhtiar Piroozi

Social Determinants of Health Research Center,

Research Institute for Health Development,

Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran

Hossein Safari

Health Promotion Research Center,

Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Heshmatollah Asadi

Lorestan University of Medical Sciences,

Khorramabad, Iran, and

Karim Nasseri, Hiwa Mohammadi and Abdorrahim Afkhamzadeh

Social Determinants of Health Research Center,

Research Institute for Health Development,

Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran

Abstract

Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to determine the second victims’experience and its related factors

among medical staff.

Design/methodology/approach –This research is a cross-sectional study that was conducted in public

hospitals of Sanandaj, west of Iran, in 2017. The sample consisted of 338 medical staff including physicians,

nurses and mid-wives. A self-report questionnaire was used for data collection. Descriptive statistics, cross-

tabs and χ

2

test were used for data analysis using SPSS20.

Findings –A total of 51.5 percent (n¼174) of the medical staff had experienced medical error in the past

year, of which 90.2 percent (n¼157) had at least one of the symptoms of “second victims.”Tachycardia and

sleep disturbances were the most commonly referred physical symptoms with 73 and 51.7 percent,

respectively. Also, repetitive/intrusive memories and fear of reputation damage were the most commonly

referred psychosocial symptoms with 68.3 and 51.7 percent, respectively. The experience of physical and

psychosocial symptoms was different according to the occupational category. In addition, there was a

significant association between the experience of physical symptoms with the hospital administrators’

awareness of medical errors and the consequences of medical errors for patients.

Practical implications –Adoption of coping strategies, including learning from medical errors as well as

hospital administrators’support from second victims, is recommended. It is also suggested that medicalstaff

be informed about the consequences of medical errors as well as physical and psychological symptoms of

second victims so that they can ask for help from managers and colleagues when the symptoms occur.

Originality/value –This study outlines the prevalence, the most psychological and physical symptoms, and

the demographic and occupational factors associated with the second victim phenomenon in medical staff.

Also, the most important strategies for coping with this phenomenon are prioritized from the perspective of

medical staff.

Keywords Iran, Medical error, Medical staff, Adverse event, Second victim

Paper type Research paper

International Journal of Workplace

Health Management

Vol. 12 No. 3, 2019

pp. 134-145

© Emerald PublishingLimited

1753-8351

DOI 10.1108/IJWHM-07-2018-0087

Received 14 July 2018

Revised 17 November 2018

7 January 2019

Accepted 29 January 2019

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

www.emeraldinsight.com/1753-8351.htm

The authors thank the Social Determinants of Health Research Center in Kurdistan University of

Medical Sciences for its cooperation. This paper is the result of a research project approved by the

Deputy Chancellor for Research and Technology of Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences in the file

number 1395.316.

134

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