The review study conducted by our department professor Assoc. Prof. Tuğba Yılmaz with Assoc. Prof. Ece Tathan Bekaroğlu was published in the journal Current Approaches in Psychiatry.

Mental health professionals working with traumatic stress may experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder similar to the people they work with. Secondary traumatic stress is a very important concept for these professionals. Secondary traumatic stress includes the emotions, thoughts, and behaviors that occur when a mental health professional becomes aware of a traumatic event experienced by someone they know, value, and have a professional relationship with. Terms associated with secondary traumatic stress in the literature include vicarious/accepted trauma, professional burnout, compassion fatigue, and countertransference. Increasing research shows that secondary traumatic stress is associated with personal trauma history, temperament, stress coping style, and social support levels. This article aims to review the current status of secondary traumatic stress and related concepts among psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurses, social workers and similar mental health professionals and to present current studies. In Turkey, where various traumatic experiences such as earthquakes are common, it is also important to examine secondary traumatic stress among mental health professionals. Healthy coping strategies, a resilient personality and the demonstration of signs of post-traumatic growth can contribute to the psychological well-being of mental health professionals.

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