Psychometric properties of the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) in 9230 adults across seven European countries: Findings from the ESTSS ADJUST study.

Background: The four-item Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) is a widely used screening measure for depression and anxiety.

Objectives: This study aimed to test factor structure and measurement invariance in an adult sample of the general population across seven European countries.

Method: A total sample of 9230 adults, 71.

Media perception and trust among disaster survivors: Tsunami survivors' interaction with journalists, media exposure, and associations with trust in media and authorities.

A critical part of disaster communication is media coverage in the interface of the afflicted, media, and authorities. One communication key is building trust. Disaster survivors encounter journalists in a high-stress context, but little is known about their perceptions of these interactions and the subsequent media exposure.

Daily uplifts during the COVID-19 pandemic: what is considered helpful in everyday life?

Background: Knowledge of what is uplifting and helpful during pandemics could inform the design of sustainable pandemic recommendations in the future. We have explored individuals' views on helpful and uplifting aspects of everyday life during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Methods: Participants answered a brief, daily survey via text messages during 14 consecutive days in July-August, 2020.

Trajectories of prolonged grief one to six years after a natural disaster.

Background: The long-term trajectories of prolonged grief are poorly understood. The aims were to examine the course of grief among bereaved disaster survivors up to six years post loss and factors predicting worse bereavement outcome. A third aim was to explore differences in grief indicators between trajectories.

A pilot study of user satisfaction and perceived helpfulness of the Swedish version of the mobile app PTSD Coach.

: There is a need for accessible interventions in the aftermath of traumatic events with documented efficacy for preventing or reducing negative mental health consequences. The PTSD Coach is a mobile app that has shown to be effective in reducing symptoms of posttraumatic stress (PTSS). : The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the user satisfaction, perceived helpfulness and potential reductions of PTSS and symptoms of depression among participants using the Swedish version of the PTSD Coach.

Self-reported exposure to severe events on the labour ward among Swedish midwives and obstetricians: A cross-sectional retrospective study.

Background: The process of delivery entails potentially traumatic events in which the mother or child becomes injured or dies. Midwives and obstetricians are sometimes responsible for these events and can be negatively affected by them as well as by the resulting investigation or complaints procedure (clinical negligence).

Objective: To assess the self-reported exposure rate of severe events among midwives and obstetricians on the delivery ward and the cumulative risk by professional years and subsequent investigations and complaints.

Six years after the wave. Trajectories of posttraumatic stress following a natural disaster.

Background: The characteristics of long-term trajectories of distress after disasters are unclear, since few studies include a comparison group. This study examines trajectories of recovery among survivors in comparison to individuals with indirect exposure.

Methods: Postal surveys were sent to Swedish tourists, repatriated from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami (n=2268), at 1, 3, and 6 years after the tsunami to assess posttraumatic stress (PTS) and poor mental health.

Properties of Swedish posttraumatic stress measures after a disaster.

This study evaluated the properties of Swedish versions of self-report measures of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with emphasis on the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). Survey data from adult survivors 1, 3, and 6 years after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami (n=1506) included the IES-R (from which the IES-6 was derived) and the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). The PTSD Checklist (PCL) was included in one survey.

Prevalence and duration of PTSD in survivors 6 years after a natural disaster.

The present study aimed to examine the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in survivors with low levels of risk factors for PTSD. The sample included 142 adults (58% women, 54% university education, 93% employed/students/retired) on vacation in Southeast Asia during the 2004 Indian Ocean disaster. Semi-structured clinical interviews (SCID-I) were performed after 6 years including PTSD, depression, specific phobia, and alcohol abuse.

Post-disaster psychosocial services across Europe: the TENTS project.

At present post-disaster activities and plans seem to vary widely. An adequate estimation of the availability of post-disaster psychosocial services across Europe is needed in order to compare them with recently developed evidence-informed psychosocial care guidelines. Here we report on the results of a cross-sectional web-based survey completed in 2008 by two hundred and eighty-six representatives of organizations involved in psychosocial responses to trauma and disaster from thirty-three different countries across Europe.

Impact of physical injury on mental health after the 2004 Southeast Asia tsunami.

Background: The risk of developing enduring post-traumatic stress reactions and mental health problems in the aftermath of disasters is substantial. However, there are inconsistencies regarding the contribution of physical injury as an independent risk factor for developing psychiatric morbidity after disasters.

Aims: The aim was to assess whether physical injury was associated with post-traumatic stress reactions and general mental health after adjusting for perceived life-threat in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami.

Prolonged grief among traumatically bereaved relatives exposed and not exposed to a tsunami.

Numerous studies on the mental health consequences of traumatic exposure to a disaster compare those exposed to those not exposed. Relatively few focus on the effect of the death of a close relative caused by the disaster-suffering a traumatic bereavement. This study compared the impact on 345 participants who lost a close relative in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, but who were themselves not present, to 141 who not only lost a relative, but also were themselves exposed to the tsunami.

Tsunami-exposed tourist survivors: signs of recovery in a 3-year perspective.

Long-term follow-up after disaster exposure indicates increased rates of psychological distress. However, trajectories and rates of recovery in large samples of disaster-exposed survivors are largely lacking. A group of 3457 Swedish survivors temporarily on vacation in Southeast Asia during the 2004 tsunami were assessed by postal questionnaire at 14 months and 3 years after the tsunami regarding post-traumatic stress reactions (IES-R) and general mental health (GHQ-12).

Tsunami-affected Scandinavian tourists: disaster exposure and post-traumatic stress symptoms.

Background: Studies of short- and long-term mental effects of natural disasters have reported a high prevalence of post-traumatic stress. Less is known about disaster-exposed tourists repatriated to stable societies.

Aims: To examine the association between exposure to the 2004 Southeast Asian tsunami and symptoms of post-traumatic stress in three Scandinavian tourist populations.

The effect of traumatic bereavement on tsunami-exposed survivors.

Fourteen months after the 2004 tsunami, mental health outcome was assessed in 187 bereaved relatives, 308 bereaved friends, and in 3,020 nonbereaved Swedish survivors. Of the bereaved relatives, 41% reported posttraumatic stress reactions and 62% reported impaired general mental health. Having been caught or chased by the tsunami in combination with bereavement was associated with increased posttraumatic stress reactions.

Impact of exposure to trauma on posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology in Swedish tourist tsunami survivors.

The aim was to examine long-term mental health and posttraumatic stress symptomatology in a Swedish tourist population after exposure to the 2004 Southeast Asian tsunami. Data from 4822 returned questionnaires 14 months after the disaster were analyzed. Respondents were categorized into 3 subgroups: (1) danger-to-life exposure group (having been caught or chased by the waves), (2) nondanger-to-life exposure group (exposed to other disaster-related stressors), and (3) low exposure group.

[Specialists teams for trauma-related disorders--in short supply in Sweden. There is a lack of both resources and effective therapeutic methods, a survey shows].

Psychological effects of serious traumas can cause severe personal suffering for the individual and will also mean a great economical loss för the individual and for the society in terms of decreased functioning due to illness. The Swedish National Center for Disaster Psychiatry has done a survey to investigate the public resources for acute psychosocial support and for treatment of disorders after psychological traumas. The organization of psychosocial support within the public health care system after major disasters is functioning all over Sweden.