Four out of five healthcare workers in Austria have, at some point in their careers, gone from helpers to victims, a support organisation has reported.
The findings come from a study conducted online by the Second Victim Association, aiming to assess how many healthcare workers in Austria are affected by this phenomenon.
The term “Second Victim” refers to healthcare providers, such as doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists, who are impacted by unforeseen incidents, medical errors, or harm to patients. To cope, they need peer support systems and professional psychosocial care.
A total of 928 nurses responded to the survey. Initially, more than two-thirds (68%) were unaware of the concept of Second Victim. However, after a brief explanation, nearly 82% identified themselves as such, according to Eva Potura, the expert who led the study. Among 63% of nurses, there had been multiple critical incidents, 18% reported just one, and 19% had experienced none. In nearly two-thirds of cases, the most recent incident occurred within the past year.
This alarmingly high number of affected individuals may be due to the significant number of violent incidents healthcare workers face, health experts said at a press conference in Vienna on Wednesday. Most participants (37%) cited aggressive behaviour from patients or their relatives, including verbal abuse, physical violence, and sexual harassment, as the trigger. In 24% of cases, the unexpected death or suicide of a patient was the cause.
Another factor may be missed or delayed nursing care due to time pressures or staff shortages. “The results of our study are alarming,” said Klemm. “Compared to international surveys, the figures are exceptionally high.” In Germany, for instance, “only” 60% of nurses identified as Second Victims. There is, therefore, an urgent need for action within Austria’s healthcare system.
Nearly 80% of the nurses surveyed were women, who reported more severe symptoms such as insomnia, reliving the incident in similar professional situations, and psychosomatic issues like headaches and back pain compared to their male colleagues. Younger nurses were also more affected than those with longer experience in the field.
Over half of the participants (57%) received help after a traumatic event, most often (92%) from their colleagues. This underlines the vital role that peer support plays in nurses’ well-being. Peers should be specially trained to support their colleagues after such incidents, Potura explained. Many affected workers also expressed a desire to process the critical event, perhaps through rapid crisis intervention. The Second Victim Association offers free psychosocial support for this, the intensive care specialist noted.
However, nearly a third (31%) received no help, although they hadn’t sought it, while 13% reported that their requests for help were denied, the study revealed. Support measures should therefore be systematically organised, alongside preventative de-escalation and communication training. Such measures could help with long-term retention in the profession.
