CITATION
Zhenyu Li, et al., (2020). Vicarious traumatization in the general public, members, and non-membersof medical teams aiding in COVID-19 control. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2020.03.007
SUMMARY
This article discusses a recent study that was conducted in China. The authors investigated vicarious traumatization in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a mobile phone app-based questionnaire, they collected information over a five day period in February 2020. Participants included 740 Chinese citizens; 234 front-line nurses directly treating patients with COVID-19, 292 non-front-line nurses, and 214 members of the general public. They considered risk factors that lead to vicarious traumatization among medical staff in addition to the utilization of a Chinese version of the vicarious traumatization evaluation scale.
The authors reported vicarious traumatization scores of front-line nurses being significantly lower than those from the general public and the non-front-line nurses. Scores between the latter two groups were not statistically significant. They also discovered a significant increase in scores from the non-front-line nurses as compared to the front-line nurses. The authors attribute these findings to various factors. One factor suggested was the strict social isolation policy that China adopted, reducing people’s exposure and probability of the virus being transmitted. Another was the opportunity to gain more knowledge about the virus, and how patients were being impacted, through the media and use of the internet. The assumption was that front-line nurses, having immediate exposure to those infected and their physical and psychological suffering, would have greater vicarious traumatization and would require more attention to their own psychological needs. That was not the case in this study. They attribute the lower vicarious traumatization scores of the front-line nurses to the fact that they are chosen for those roles, have greater work experience, and are provided with better psychological preparation. The authors suggest that front-line nurses are also more knowledgeable about the disease than the other two groups. Lastly, the non-front-line nurses may be impacted by the patients with COVID-19, but they are also affected by concern for their colleagues who are front-line providers.
In addition to a short mention of the study’s limitations, the authors suggest that early intervention and transparent dissemination of epidemic information can facilitate psychological treatment of vicarious traumatization and control of the virus.
I CHOSE THIS ARTICLE in light of the current health crisis we all find ourselves in and the need for psychological services. I also chose it because the results were not what I expected. As a student preparing to begin internship in August at a VA Medical Center, I felt it was critical to highlight research being done with front line workers as well as those in the general public.
THIS MONTH’S REHABILITATION SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT was chosen by Molly Keith, a fifth year Psy.D student at Nova Southeastern University, specializing in Neuropsychology and Rehabilitation Psychology.