title: How therapists react to patient's suicide: findings and consequences for health care professionals' wellbeing.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To test the robustness of the findings of previous studies in a large aggregated sample regarding (a) the impact of a patient's suicide on therapist's distress; (b) identify a potential subgroup of therapists needing special postvention; (c) and assess potential differences in overall distress between professional groups and at different levels of care.
  
  
  METHODS
  A questionnaire, characterizing the therapists, their reactions and the patients, had been sent out to 201 psychiatric hospitals in Germany providing different levels of care. Aggregated data from previous studies have been used.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 39.6% of all cases, therapists suffer from severe distress after a patients' suicide. The global item "overall distress" can be used as an indicator to identify a subgroup of therapists that might need individualized postvention. No significant difference in overall distress experienced was observed between professional groups and at different levels of care.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data suggest that identifying the severely distressed subgroup could be done using a visual analogue scale for overall distress. As a consequence, more specific, individualized and intensified help could be provided to these professionals, helping them to overcome distress and thereby ensuring delivery of high quality care to the patient.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy II, Christian-Doppler-Hospital, Paracelsus Medical University, A-5020 Salzburg, Austria. Electronic address: f.wurst@salk.at.
authors.forename: Friedrich Martin
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Wurst
authors.forename: Isabella
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kunz
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Skipper
authors.forename: Manfred
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wolfersdorf
authors.forename: Karl H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Beine
authors.forename: Rüdiger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vogel
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: Sylvie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Petitjean
authors.forename: Natasha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Thon
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010361:Patients; D011570:Psychiatry; D011613:Psychotherapy; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000209:etiology; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: Emotional reaction; Patient suicide; Postvention; Therapists' reaction