RESEARCH PAPER
Peritraumatic distress among emergency medical system employees: A proposed cut-off for the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory
1
Department of Emergency Medicine, Medical University, Lublin, Poland
2
Department of Anaesthesiological and Intensive Care Nursing, Medical University, Lublin, Poland
3
Department of Applied Psychology, Medical University, Lublin, Poland
Corresponding author
Ann Agric Environ Med. 2019;26(4):579–584
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
Prevention of occupational diseases in agriculture, forestry, food industry and wood industryState of the health of rural communities depending on various factors: social factors, accessibility of medical care, etc.
ABSTRACT
Introduction:
Emergency medical system (EMS) workers are exposed to traumatic events that may lead to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Objectives:
The purpose of this study was to explore and discuss the relationship between peritraumatic distress (PD) and elevated posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in EMS employees.
Material and methods:
A cross-sectional study including 100 EMS employees was conducted. Demographic and occupational data were collected for each subject. The Polish version of the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) was used to evaluate PTSS and the Polish version of the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory (PDI) was used to determine the level of PD experienced during and immediately after a traumatic event.
Results:
The highest scores indicative of distress were obtained on the negative emotions subscale, and the lowest on the loss of control and arousal (LCA) subscales. A strong positive correlation was found between the severity of PD and PTSS. Among the PDI subscales, the severity of PTSS was most strongly correlated with LCA, and had the weakest correlation with sense of threat. The optimal PDI cut-off score for predicting elevated PTSS was 19.
Conclusions:
PD is strongly related to elevated PTSS and serves as a useful tool for screening EMS workers at risk of developing PTSD. Individuals with PDI scores of 19 or higher are good candidates for specialist consultations aimed at detecting and treating elevated PTSS.
Emergency medical system (EMS) workers are exposed to traumatic events that may lead to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Objectives:
The purpose of this study was to explore and discuss the relationship between peritraumatic distress (PD) and elevated posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in EMS employees.
Material and methods:
A cross-sectional study including 100 EMS employees was conducted. Demographic and occupational data were collected for each subject. The Polish version of the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) was used to evaluate PTSS and the Polish version of the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory (PDI) was used to determine the level of PD experienced during and immediately after a traumatic event.
Results:
The highest scores indicative of distress were obtained on the negative emotions subscale, and the lowest on the loss of control and arousal (LCA) subscales. A strong positive correlation was found between the severity of PD and PTSS. Among the PDI subscales, the severity of PTSS was most strongly correlated with LCA, and had the weakest correlation with sense of threat. The optimal PDI cut-off score for predicting elevated PTSS was 19.
Conclusions:
PD is strongly related to elevated PTSS and serves as a useful tool for screening EMS workers at risk of developing PTSD. Individuals with PDI scores of 19 or higher are good candidates for specialist consultations aimed at detecting and treating elevated PTSS.
REFERENCES (29)
1.
Bossini L, Ilaria C, Koukouna D. PTSD in victims of terroristic attacks – a comparison with the impact of other traumatic events on patients’ lives. Psychiatria Pol. 2016; 31: 907–921.
2.
Guardia D, Brunet A, Duhamel A, Ducrocq F, Demarty A, Vaiva. Prediction of trauma-related disorders: A proposed cutoff score for the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory. Primary Care Companion CNS Disorder. 2013; 15(1). pii: PCC.12l01406.
3.
Kim JE, Dager SR, Jeong HS. Firefighters, posttraumatic stress disorder, and barriers to treatment: Results from a nationwide total population survey. PLoS One. 2018; 13(1): e0190630. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0190630. eCollection 2018.
4.
Nishi D, Koido Y, Nakaya N, Sone T, Noguch H, Hamazaki K. et al. Peritraumatic distress, watching television, and posttraumatic stress symptoms among rescue workers after the Great East Japan earthquake. PLoS One. 2012; 7(4): e35248. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0035248.
5.
American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, third ed. American Psychiatric Association, Washington DC, 1980. http://dsm.psychiatryonline.or... (access: 2018.04.18).
6.
American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth ed. American Psychiatric Association, Washington DC, 2013. https://dsm.psychiatryonline.o... (access: 2018.05.20).
7.
Gelaye E, Zheng Y, Medina-Mora, ME, Rondon MB, Sánchez SE, Williams MA. Validity of the posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD) checklist in pregnant women. BMC Psychiatry. 2017; 17: 179. Epub 2017 May 12.
8.
Suzuki Y, Yabe H, Horikoshi N, Yasumura S, Kawakami N, Ohtsuru A, et al. Mental Health Group of the Fukushima Health Management Survey. Diagnostic accuracy of Japanese posttraumatic stress measures after a complex disaster: the Fukushima Health Management Survey. Asia Pacific Psychiatry . 2017; Epub 2016 Aug 9. doi: 10.1111/appy.12248.
9.
Rybojad B, Aftyka A. Validity, reliability and factor analysis of the Polish version of the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory. Psychiatria Polska Online first. 2017; 84: 1–15, doi: https://doi.org/10.12740/PP/On.... (access: 2018.04.15).
10.
Brunet A, Weiss DS, Metzler TJ, Best SR, Neylan TC, Rogers C, et al. The Peritraumatic Distress Inventory: a proposed measure of PTSD criterion A2. Am J Psychiatry. 2001; 158: 1480–1485.
11.
Bui EA, Brunet A, Olliac E, Very E, Allenou C, Raynaud JP, et al. Validation of the Peritraumatic Dissociative Experiences Questionnaire and Peritraumatic Distress Inventory in school-aged victims of road traffic accidents. European Psychiatry. 2011; 26: 108- 111. doi: 10.1016/j.eurpsy.2010.09.007.
12.
Nishi D, Matsuoka Y, Noguchi H, Sakuma K, Yonemoto N, Yanagita, T, et al. Reliability and validity of the Japanese version of the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory. General Hospital Psychiatry. 2009; 31: 75–79.
13.
Kianpoor M, Amouchie R, Raghibi M, Hesam S, Mazidi M, Abasian M. et al. Validity and reliability of Persian versions of peritraumatic distress inventory (pdi) and dissociative experiences scale (des). Acta Medica Mediterranea. 2016; 32: 1493–1501.
14.
Jehel L, Brunet A, Paterniti S, Guelfi JD. Validation of the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory’s French translation. Can J Psychiatry. 2005; 50: 67–71.
15.
Weiss DS, Marmar CR. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised. In: Wilson JP, Keane TM. red. Assessing psychological trauma and PTSD. New York, NY: Guilford Press. 1997; 399–411.
16.
Juczynski Z, Oginska-Bulik N. Measurement of post-traumatic stress disorder- Polish version of Impact Event Scale-Revised. Psychiatry. 2009; 6: 15–25.
17.
Bennett P, Williams Y, Page N, Hood K, Woollard M. Levels of mental health problems among UK emergency ambulance workers. Emerg Med J. 2004; 21: 235–236.
18.
Ogińska-Bulik N. Rola strategii radzenia sobie ze stresem w rozwoju po traumie u ratowników medycznych (The role of doping strategies in posttraumatic growth in medical rescue workers). Occup Med. 2014; 65: 209–217 (in Polish).
19.
Lis-Turlejska M. Stres traumatyczny. Występowanie, następstwa, terapia (Traumaticstress. Occurrence, outcome, therapy). Academic Publ. Żak Warsaw. 2002.
20.
Kessler RC, Sonnega A, Bromet E. Posttraumatic stress disorders in the national comorbidity survey. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1995; 52: 1048–1060.
21.
Thomas É, Saumier D, Brunet A. Peritraumatic distress and the course of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms: a meta-analysis. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry. 2012; 57: 122–129.
22.
Misra M, Greenberg N, Hutchinson C, Brain A, Glozier N. Psychological impact upon London Ambulance Service of the 2005 bombings. Occup Med (Lond). 2009; 59: 428–433.
23.
Rybojad B, Aftyka A , Baran M, Rzońca P. Risk Factors for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Polish Paramedics: A Pilot Study. J Emer Med. 2016; 50: 270–276.
24.
Sterud T, Ekeberg O, Hem E. Health status in the ambulance services: a systematic review. BMC Health Services Res. 2006; 6:82. doi: 10.1186/1472–6963–6–82.
25.
Kucmin T, Kucmin A, Turska D, Turski A, Nogalski A. Coping styles and dispositional optimism as predictors of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms intensity in paramedics. Psychiatr Pol. 2018; 30; 52(3): 557–571. doi: 10.12740/PP/68514. Epub 2018 Jun 30.
26.
Kosydar-Bochenek J, Ozga D, Mędrzycka-Dąbrowska W, Lewandowski B. Can resuscitation bring positive changes for paramedics? Polish experiences. Resuscitation. 2017; 117: e17. doi: 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2017.05.026.
27.
Wojciszke B. The negative social world: The Polish culture of complaining. Int J Sociol. 2005; 34: 38–59.
28.
Boisclair Demarble J, Fortin C, D’Antonom B, Guay S. Gender Differences in the Prediction of Acute Stress Disorder From Peritraumatic Dissociation and Distress Among Victims of Violent Crimes. J Interpersonal Violence. 2017; 1: 886260517693000. [Epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.1177/0886260517693000.
29.
Bunnell BE, Davidson TM, Ruggiero KJ. The Peritraumatic Distress Inventory: Factor structure and predictive validity in traumatically injured patients admitted through a Level I trauma center. J Anxiety Dis. 2018; Apr; 55: 8–13. doi: 10.1016/j.janxdis.2018.03.002. Epub 2018 Mar.
Improvement of visual identification of the journal - task financed under the agreement No. 618/P-DUN/2019 by the Minister of Science and Higher Education allocated to the activities of disseminating science.
Generation of the DOI (Digital Object Identifier) - task financed under the agreement No. 618/P-DUN/2019 by the Minister of Science and Higher
We process personal data collected when visiting the website. The function of obtaining information about users and their behavior is carried out by voluntarily entered information in forms and saving cookies in end devices. Data, including cookies, are used to provide services, improve the user experience and to analyze the traffic in accordance with the Privacy policy. Data are also collected and processed by Google Analytics tool (more).
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.