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forYOU Employee Resources

 

Phelps Health’s Employee Support Team: forYOU


The forYOU Team is a multidisciplinary group of Phelps Health employees who have been selected and trained in crisis support and stress management. A member of the forYOU Team is available to employees who need support and guidance while experiencing a normal reaction to a stressful event or outcome, also called the second victim phenomenon or syndrome. 

The forYOU Team raises awareness of this syndrome and offers consistent, system-wide support. The team also provides additional resources to help management teams effectively support these victims.

The forYOU Team will:

  • Provide emotional first aid to our staff who have been involved in unanticipated or stressful events
  • Provide one-on-one or group peer support and explore the staff member’s normal reactions and feelings that often occur after a stressful or traumatic event
  • Provide the second victim with a safe zone to express thoughts and reactions to enhance coping
  • Provide the employee assurance that they are experiencing a normal reaction
  • Ensure that information shared is strictly confidential

Referral forms can be emailed to foryou@phelpshealth.org or submitted electronically here

Email us at foryou@phelpshealth.org or call our message line at (573) 458-8478.

This program has been adapted from MU Health Care.

 

What is a second victim?

Second victims are healthcare providers who are involved in an unanticipated adverse patient event, medical error and/or a patient related injury and become victimized in the sense that the provider is traumatized by the event.

SECOND VICTIMS OFTEN:

  • Feel personally responsible for the unexpected patient outcomes
  • Feel as though they have failed the patient
  • Second-guess their clinical skills
  • Second-guess their knowledge base

Common reactions to a stressful event include the following:

 

  • Sleep and/or eating disturbance
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Headache
  • Fatigue
  • Diarrhea
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Rapid heart rate and/or breathing
  • Muscle tension

 

Psychological symptoms associated with second victim include the following:

 

  • Isolation
  • Frustration
  • Fear
  • Grief and remorse
  • Feeling uncomfortable returning to work
  • Anger and irritability
  • Depression and/or extreme sadness
  • Self-doubt
  • Flashbacks
  • Poor attention span after a stressful clinical event

 

Positive ways to cope with stress include the following:

 

  • Remind yourself that is it is OK to experience some expected reactions to a stressful event.
  • Give yourself permission to react; don’t try to hide your feelings.
  • Keep your life as routine as possible.
  • Eat regularly. Minimize the use of sugar and caffeine.
  • Physical exercise, along with relaxation, will alleviate some physical reactions to stress.
  • Avoid alcohol and drug use.
  • Do something nice for yourself!