Being on-call: an exploration of the experiences of doctors and significant others

Previous research has not compared proximal and distal doctors’ subjective evaluations of their on-call experiences and there is a dearth of evidence on the impact of being on-call on doctors’ personal lives. The aim of this thesis was to explore on-call doctors (i.e. proximal and distal) and significant others’ (SOs) perceptions of their experiences when they or their partners are on-call. The thesis also sought to uncover the meaning of being on-call for the participants’ family and social lives. Consistent with qualitative methodology, 25 semi structured interviews were conducted with 18 Trinbagonian doctors who worked on-call and seven Trinbagonian SOs whose partners worked on-call. Thematic analysis was used to search for commonalities in the meaning of the experience between and within the groups. The findings revealed that the participants were ambivalent in their perceptions of their on-call experience (i.e. it could not be classified as either favourable or unfavourable). Themes centred on the doctors’ acceptance of their on-call duties despite describing their experience as tiring, stressful and dangerous. They also emphasised SOs’ perceptions of their partners’ on-call as no longer an issue. Nevertheless, it was a source of distraction and they remained concerned about their partners’ safety when responding to call-outs. Being on-call also had implications for how the doctors and SOs managed their intimate and parent-child relationships and the extent to which they engaged in non-work activities. These implications differed according to on-call category and gender - the latter of which was indicative of the reproduction of wider Trinbagonian gendered ideologies within social structures. The study suggests that strategies geared towards improving the on-call experience of doctors should reflect distinctions in the on-call experiences of proximal and distal doctors and role expectations of men and women doctors. It should also incorporate the experiences of those who live with them

Transnational and Transdisciplinary Lessons of COVID 19 From the Perspective of Risk and Management

Rarely has scientific research been as solicited as societies struggle to cope with the coronavirus. The questions raised by COVID-19 are germane to the medical and the social sciences. From an international relations perspective, COVID-19 gets to the heart of what comprises the global commons. From a public policy perspective, COVID-19 is the wicked policy problem par excellence, requiring inter-agency collaboration. From a comparative politics perspective, COVID-19 provides a vast living dataset to engage in multi-level comparisons and real-time experiments. In the medical research field, the pandemic has provided advancements in medical science that would not have been possible without access to a living laboratory. The reprint addresses the transnational and transdisciplinary challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Responding to existential dilemmas, the COVID-19 pandemic calls for a major transdisciplinary research effort that necessarily combines several levels of empirical analysis and methodological tools and bridges distinct academic and scientific traditions. The main sections of the reprint provide specific insights from medical and social sciences, health and well-being, politics and society and international relations. Though the chapters are framed in terms of distinct disciplinary perspectives and traditions, the overarching spirit of the book to open up received wisdoms and paradigms to challenges from scholars working in different academic disciplines and traditions

The Lived Experiences of 911 Dispatchers With Compassion Fatigue: An Interpretive Phenomenology

911 dispatchers are the “first” first responders in an emergency and play an intrinsic role in the public safety continuum. 911 dispatchers are exposed to daily and cumulative stress from the repeated empathic engagement of those they serve, and from shift work, staffing shortages, and inability to make mistakes. However, there is a dearth of peer reviewed literature on 911 dispatchers and compassion fatigue (CF). CF is described as the emotional and physical exhaustion experienced due to the constant exposure to the trauma of others. CF symptomology in 911 dispatchers has far reaching implications for not only the citizens who need critical lifesaving support but also the first responders who rely on the 911 dispatchers for detailed information relating to officer safety. In this study, I examined the lived experiences of 911 dispatchers with CF through an interpretive phenomenology lens. The data was gathered from one-on-one interviews and was analyzed on the individual level and from across participant themes while maintaining the integrity of the individual participant responses. Six superordinate themes emerged: 911 Dispatcher Challenges, Management/Agency, Physical Impact, Traumatic Calls, Clinical Symptoms, and When the Helpers Need Help. The results of this study highlighted the dire need for increased awareness of the challenges dispatchers experience, management support, mental health outreach, and research involving this essential population

NOIRS 2008

"The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) hosted the fourth National Occupational Injury Research Symposium (NOIRS) on October 21-23, 2008 at the Sheraton Station Square in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. NOIRS is the only forum for the presentation of occupational injury research findings, data, and methods. This symposium served numerous objectives aimed at preventing traumatic occupational injury through research and prevention. They included: 1. Presenting current research findings. 2. Fostering collaboration among researchers from a broad range of disciplines and perspectives, and exploring underutilized disciplines and topic areas. 3. Identifying best practices in the area of intervention evaluation. 4. Exploring the cost-effectiveness of injury prevention strategies and interventions. 5. Showcasing innovative and high technology approaches to research and prevention. 6. Continuing to promote the implementation of NORA. Questions that were addressed included: 1. What are the latest traumatic occupational injury research findings? 2. What are emerging problem areas in workplace trauma? 3. How is prevention through design being applied to occupational injury research and prevention? 4. What activities are being done to implement research to practice in the area of traumatic occupational injury? 5. What are the best practice intervention and prevention strategies and which strategies do not work? In what specific workplaces and under what circumstances? 6. What are the economic costs of traumatic occupational injuries and how cost-effective are the prevention strategies? 7. What are current and emerging research areas and disciplines? 8. What are the trends in traumatic occupational injury and fatality incidence? In research tools, techniques, and methods? In prevention? 9. What specific workplace risks are faced by adolescents, older adults, minority workers, non-English-speaking workers, low-literacy workers, and other special populations? 10. How can researchers and practitioners in different sectors and disciplines better collaborate and coordinate their activities to reduce traumatic occupational injuries? 11. What methods are available to assess, quantify, and compare traumatic occupational injury risks? Occupational injury researchers from all disciplines were invited to attend and share their research. We encouraged participation by all interested individuals, including: Safety researchers; Safety practitioners; Health care professionals; Administrators; Epidemiologists; Engineers; Manufacturers; Communication Researchers; Health and science communicators; Regulators; Employers; Policy makers; Insurers; Students; Advocates; Workers; Educators and trainers; and, Others interested in attending. The symposium consisted of contributed oral presentations in concurrent sessions and a poster session." - NIOSHTIC-2Available via the World Wide Web as an Acrobat .pdf file (1.30 MB, 92 p.)

The relationship among emotional intelligence, coping strategies, and occupational burnout for child protective service workers

There are low retention rates of child protective service caseworkers and this impacts the quality of care of the families served. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between emotional intelligence, coping strategies and occupational burnout for CPS caseworkers. In addition, examining the relationship between education type, education level, and caseload size as it relates to emotional intelligence, coping strategies, and occupational burnout among child protective caseworkers. The theoretical framework utilized was the Transactional Theory of Stress and Coping. A convenience sampling was used to collect participants employed as FBSS or CVS caseworkers at Texas Department of Family Protective Services. A total of 177 CPS FBSS and CVS caseworkers were polled. The information was gathered through Texas Department of Family Protective Services case workers and through social media recruiting. Participants completed the Wong and Law EI Scale, Brief COPE Instrument, and Copenhagen Burnout Inventory, and a demographic survey. Results of the MANOVA showed a statistically significant Wilks’s lambda: Λ = .907, F(8 , 326) = 2.037, p \u3c .042, partial n2 = .315. Followed with a multiple regression analysis, showed negative coping skills were found to be significant predictors of occupational burnout among child protective service workers. Examination of the unstandardized beta found that for every point or unit a CPS caseworker increased in negative coping, the participant increased on burnout by .437 points. The study\u27s findings serve as a foundation for future research, policy, and practice recommendations. Keywords: child protective services, caseworkers, emotional intelligence, coping strategies, occupational burnout, education type, education level, caseload size, Transactional Theory of Stress and Coping, Texas Department of Family Protective Services, Wong and Law EI Scale, Brief COPE Instrument, Copenhagen Burnout Inventory, negative coping skills, positive coping skills, retention rates, quality of care, policy recommendations

2018 EURēCA Abstract Book

Listing of student participant abstracts

Experience of Burnout Among Psychiatric Hospital Staff

Negative experiences at work are common at inpatient psychiatric hospitals and can result in burnout. This is especially the case for psychiatric hospital staff, as they are commonly the first and most frequent line of contact for patients in acute psychiatric care. This study provided relevant insight into the factors that influence the experience of burnout among psychiatric hospital staff that care for patients in inpatient psychiatric hospitals. Research on how burnout affects psychiatric hospital staff apart from other medical professionals is not robust and lacking in qualitative analysis. The transactional model of stress and coping framework constituted the theoretical framework for this study. Through semi-structured interviews, 10 participants were able to elaborate on their unique experiences with burnout. Results of this study indicated participants experienced burnout at work, which resulted in symptoms of anxiety and depression and impacted their interpersonal and social relationships. They expressed that safety concerns related to patient aggression, excessive workload, unpredictability in daily work tasks, and an uncooperative workplace culture contributed to their experience of burnout. The results of this study have the potential to be used for positive social change in understanding the burnout experience among psychiatric hospital staff and increasing facility preparedness to address issues at work that contribute to burnout