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Frequency and impact of patient suicide on psychiatric trainees

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

Guido Pieters ,
Véronique De Gucht ,
Gustaaf Joos  and
Elke De Heyn
Guido Pieters*
Affiliation:
Behavior Therapy Department, University Center St. Jozef, Leuvensesteenweg 517, 3070Kortenberg, Belgium Center for Mental Health Care, Vlaams-Brabant Oost, Leuven, Belgium
Véronique De Gucht
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Psychology, University Center St. Jozef, Kortenberg, Belgium Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, Leiden University, The Netherlands
Gustaaf Joos
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Psychology, University Center St. Jozef, Kortenberg, Belgium
Elke De Heyn
Affiliation:
Center for Mental Health Care, Vlaams-Brabant Oost, Leuven, Belgium
*
*Corresponding author. E-mail address: guido.pieters@med.kuleuven.ac.be (G. Pieters).
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Abstract

The objective of the present study was to conduct a systematic inquiry into the frequency and impact of patients’ suicide on psychiatric trainees, and the availability and usefulness of training courses. Data were collected from 114 psychiatric trainees of the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium, representing a 70% response rate. A self-report questionnaire developed in the UK was adapted to the Flemish situation. A Dutch version of the Impact of Event Scale (IES) inquiring about post-traumatic stress symptoms was also used. The frequency of suicide experience was considerably higher in the present study than in similar studies in the USA and the UK. Thirty percent of first year trainees had been confronted with patient suicide. Personal and professional impact of patient suicide, as well as post-traumatic stress scores were considerably lower in Flemish psychiatric trainees. They considered informal support to be of more value than formal support to come to terms with the event. Finally, postgraduate training in post-suicide management was found to be largely insufficient. The results of the present study show that psychiatric trainees in the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium are at a high risk of experiencing patient suicide, whereas the impact of this experience appears to be relatively low. Only a small minority of trainees has received adequate training on procedures to follow after patient suicide.

Keywords

Psychiatric traineesSuicidePost-traumatic stressTraining
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 18 , Issue 7 , November 2003 , pp. 345 - 349
Copyright
Copyright © Éditions scientifiques et médicales Elsevier SAS.

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