Symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder among emergency medicine residents

There have been anecdotal reports of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in physicians responding to mass casualty events. No formal, prospective study has addressed the presence of PTSD symptoms as a result of the work of Emergency Medicine residents in non-mass casualty settings. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the presence of symptoms of PTSD among Emergency Medicine residents (EMR). The study was a survey of EMR, administered in an anonymous, voluntary format in late June 2001. The survey was conducted at an Emergency Medicine residency program that serves a large, urban, county hospital. Four groups, incoming interns and three EM resident classes were surveyed. PTSD symptoms were divided into three categories according to the DSM IV. The Jonckheere-Terpstra test for trends was applied to each of the three categories of symptoms. Sixty-three surveys were administered, with a 93.6% response rate. All respondents reported experience with patient death or dying. Seven residents reported sufficient symptoms to meet the DSM IV criteria for PTSD. Each of the three symptom categories showed a statistically significant increase in the proportion of positive responses as the resident time in training increased (p < 0.01). In conclusion, many EM residents reported symptoms of PTSD. Symptoms of PTSD significantly increased as resident level of training increased.