Critical perspectives on research on post-traumatic stress disorder and implications for the South African context

2006 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Edwards
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ◽  
Traumatic Stress ◽  
Stress Disorder ◽  
South African Context ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
The South ◽  
African Context ◽  
Post Traumatic ◽  
Critical Perspectives

scholarly journals Male Survivors’ Perceptions of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Management Strategies in the South African Mining Sector

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thandisizwe Redford Mavundla ◽  
Lindiwe Innocentia Zungu
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ◽  
Traumatic Stress ◽  
Stress Disorder ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
The South ◽  
Mining Sector ◽  
Male Survivors ◽  
Post Traumatic

Deep-shaft mining is regarded as a high-risk occupation with an increasing number of traumatic accidents. Though there are strategies for the management of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), little has been done to document the male survivors’ perceptions of PTSD management strategies in the South African mining sector. An exploratory, descriptive and contextual study was conducted within the South African mining sector to explore and describe the survivors’ perceptions of PTSD management strategies. The population comprised all men who were suffering from PTSD as a result of accidents in the mines. A purposive sample of 29 men was selected to participate in the study and data saturation was achieved. Unstructured individual interviews and field notes were used as methods of data collection. One question was asked during the interviews: “What do think helped you recover from PTSD?” Communication skills were employed to facilitate the participation of the men during the interviews. Data were collected using a voice recorder and were then transcribed verbatim and analysed using Tesch’s descriptive method of data analysis. Measures for ensuring trustworthiness were applied to verify the findings. Three themes emerged during data analysis: (1) perceived emphasis on physical versus psychological treatments, (2) perceived coping strategies used to deal with the trauma, and lastly, (3) the perceived effect of social support networks during trauma. Based on the perceptions of the participants, it became evident that PTSD management did not meet expectations. An integrated approach is recommended for the future treatment of psychological and physical trauma among survivors of traumatic events in the mining sector.

From post-traumatic stress disorder to absolute dependence in an intensive care unit: reflections on a clinical account

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tina Sideris
Keyword(s):  
Intensive Care Unit ◽  
Intensive Care ◽  
South African ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ◽  
Traumatic Stress ◽  
Stress Disorder ◽  
Central Character ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Icu Patients ◽  
Post Traumatic

This paper tells the story of one man’s experience of terrifying hallucinations and nightmares in an intensive care unit (ICU), drawing attention to the reality that intensive care treatment induces emotional suffering severe enough to be identified as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A body of international research, confirmed by South African studies, links life-saving critical care to symptoms which qualify for secondary psychiatric diagnosis including of post-traumatic stress. Risk factors include pre-ICU comorbid psychopathology. Early on in the clinical encounter with the patient in this paper it emerged that he bore the scars of another trauma. He had been a soldier. Recounting the terror he experienced when he was being weaned off mechanical ventilation evoked memories of his military history. Paradoxically, these shifted the focus away from the symptoms of PTSD, to make the helplessness and dependency of ICU patients more visible. This patient’s clinical account and patient experiences in other studies reveal the relational vulnerability of ICU patients. In as much as experiences of ICU treatment can be terrifying, the non-response of carers distresses patients. This interplay of wounding and care provides a starting point from which to explore how we account for the neglect of relational care that is a recurring theme in medical contexts, without blaming the carers. These questions find resonance in a South African novel to which the paper refers. A novel about war and trauma movingly portrays the internal conflict of the central character, a nurse and her quest not to care, as a defence against vulnerability. In these ways writing about the relational vulnerability of patients opened up questions about the social and institutional context of carer vulnerability.

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