Problem: Trauma-informed care (TIC) provides a medical framework for addressing and mitigating the negative consequences of trauma. In response to student and faculty advocacy, medical schools are developing trauma-informed curricular content. However, medical education literature does not present a comprehensive assessment rubric to evaluate medical students' acquisition of trauma-informed clinical skills.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Spanish-speaking trauma and burn patients have unique needs in their postdischarge care navigation. The confluence of limited English proficiency, injury recovery, mental health, socioeconomic disadvantages, and acute stressors after hospital admission converge to enhance patients' vulnerability, but their specific needs and means of meeting these needs have not been well described.
Study Design: This prospective, cross-sectional survey study describes the results of a multi-institutional initiative devised to help Spanish-speaking trauma and burn patients in their care navigation after hospitalization.
Background And Objective: Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state (HHS) are life-threatening conditions that send nearly 180,000 patients to the intensive care unit each year, with mortality rates up to 5-10%. Little is known about the impact of concurrent psychiatric disorders on specific DKA/HHS outcomes. Identifying these relationships offers opportunities to improve clinical management, treatment planning, and mitigate associated morbidity and mortality.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Collectively, studies from medical and surgical intensive care units (ICU) suggest that long-term outcomes are poor for patients who have spent significant time in an ICU. We sought to identify determinants of post-intensive care physical and mental health outcomes 6-12 months after injury.
Methods: Adult trauma patients [ISS ≥9] admitted to one of three Level-1 trauma centers were interviewed 6-12 months post-injury to evaluate patient-reported outcomes.
J Am Coll Emerg Physicians Open
August 2023
Background: To describe factors that influence interprofessional staff decisions and ability to implement trauma-informed care (TIC) in a level-one emergency department (ED) trauma center.
Methods: This qualitative research study consisted of semi-structured interviews and quantitative surveys that were conducted between March and December 2020 at an urban trauma center. Eligible participants were staff working in the ED.
We present a case of Torsades de Pointes (TdP) in a patient with COVID-19 infection and multiple TdP risk factors including QT-interval prolongation, hemodialysis, bradycardia, and treatment with remdesivir, citalopram, and quetiapine. The case was complicated by post-resuscitation anxiety superimposed on a history of medical trauma since childhood. Top experts in the field of consultation-liaison psychiatry, trauma informed care, and cardiac electrophysiology provide perspectives on this case with a review of the literature.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine 2016 report on trauma care, the establishment of a National Trauma Research Action Plan to strengthen and guide future trauma research was recommended. To address this recommendation, the Department of Defense funded the Coalition for National Trauma Research to generate a comprehensive research agenda spanning the continuum of trauma and burn care. We describe the gap analysis and high-priority research questions generated from the National Trauma Research Action Plan panel on long-term outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Compared to other age groups, young adults are at risk of suffering COVID-19 pandemic-related psychological problems. Prior research suggests that such adverse events (like the pandemic) can initiate adaptive psychological changes, referred to as posttraumatic growth (PTG); however, limited studies have examined the moderating role of PTG among young adults in the United States with regard to COVID-19-related distress. Thus, this study examines whether pandemic-related distress has a differential effect on young adults' mental health symptoms based on varying levels of PTG.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) as a predictor of long-term outcomes after injury.
Background: The SVI is a measure used in emergency preparedness to identify need for resources in the event of a disaster or hazardous event, ranking each census tract on 15 demographic/social factors.
Methods: Moderate-severely injured adult patients treated at 1 of 3 level-1 trauma centers were prospectively followed 6 to 14 months post-injury.
Introduction: Trauma exposure is a highly prevalent experience for patients and clinicians in emergency medicine (EM). Trauma-informed care (TIC) is an effective framework to mitigate the negative health impacts of trauma. This systematic review synthesizes the range of TIC interventions in EM, with a focus on patient and clinician outcomes, and identifies gaps in the current research on implementing TIC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Early research suggests the COVID-19 pandemic worsened intimate partner violence (IPV) in the US. In particular, stay-at-home orders and social distancing kept survivors in close proximity to their abusers and restricted access to resources and care. We aimed to understand and characterize the impact of the pandemic on delivery of IPV care in Boston.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Determine the proportion and characteristics of traumatic injury survivors who perceive a negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their recovery and to define post-injury outcomes for this cohort.
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated physical, psychological, and social stressors that may create a uniquely difficult recovery and reintegration environment for injured patients.
Methods: Adult (≥18 years) survivors of moderate-to-severe injury completed a survey 6 to 14 months post-injury during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have become increasingly recognized as essential to the practice of high-quality patient care delivery and the support of members of the clinical environment. A solid understanding of DEI contributes to a better grasp of what drives health care disparities and yields improved clinical outcomes for minority populations. This column discusses how individuals can practically promote DEI by describing the design and implementation of DEI in an academic psychiatry department.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGiven the prolonged nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, the purpose of this study was to examine the association between posttraumatic growth (PTG) among young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic and their psychosocial characteristics, specifically: distress tolerance; resilience; family connectedness; depression, anxiety, and PTSD symptoms; and COVID-19-related worry. The study utilized data from 805 U.S.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCritical Illness Recovery Programs report low attendance. We aimed to provide information about postintensive care syndrome and to learn which patients would pursue help in a Critical Illness Recovery Clinic. All patients who checked in to our Lung Center were given a survey regarding their ICU experience and offered information about postintensive care syndrome and an appointment in the clinic.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe authors sought to determine whether providing a rapid-access ambulatory psychiatry encounter correlated with emergency department utilization during a 6-month follow-up period. Electronic medical records of patients who accessed ambulatory psychiatric care through an urgent care psychiatry clinic that offers treatment exclusively on a walk-in basis over a 1-year period (N = 157) were reviewed retrospectively to track emergency department encounters with and without a psychiatric chief complaint in the 6 months before and after the initial psychiatry evaluation. Among patients who had not previously received ambulatory psychiatric care (N = 88), emergency department utilization decreased from 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImportance: Trauma is the leading cause of death for US individuals younger than 45 years, and uncontrolled hemorrhage is a major cause of trauma mortality. The US military's medical advancements in the field of prehospital hemorrhage control have reduced battlefield mortality by 44%. However, despite support from many national health care organizations, no integrated approach to research has been made regarding implementation, epidemiology, education, and logistics of prehospital hemorrhage control by layperson immediate responders in the civilian sector.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPatients with psychiatric illness feel the brunt of the intersection of many of our society's and our health care system's disparities, and the vulnerability of this population during the Covid-19 pandemic cannot be overstated. Patients with psychiatric illness often suffer from the stigma of mental illness and receive poor medical care. Many patients with severe and persistent mental illness face additional barriers, including poverty, marginal housing, and food insecurity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Assess the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after injury and their association with long-term functional outcomes.
Background: Mental health disorders (MHD) after injury have been associated with worse long-term outcomes. However, prior studies almost exclusively focused on PTSD.