Influences that count: professional development of psychotherapists and counsellors in India

Secondary trauma, burnout and resilience among mental health professionals from India: A review of research

While globally there has been growing research interest in the negative psychological consequences faced by helping professionals, literature among Indian Mental Health Professionals (MHPs) is sparse, and predominantly focussed on health care workers. This systematic review aims to synthesize and summarize current Indian literature on burnout, secondary traumatic stress and resilience among Indian MHPs. The review explores 14 research studies published in peer-reviewed journals between January 2005 to January 2022. Studies in the areas of secondary traumatic stress, burnout, vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, and resilience have been included in the review. The term resilience within this paper includes compassion satisfaction, vicarious post-traumatic growth, well-being, coping, and stress management. The mental health professionals considered were psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses, psychiatric social workers, clinical psychologists, psychotherapists and counsellors. Studies were reviewed for their methodological considerations, the mental health population being studied, and the primary outcomes. Data related to sociodemographic variables, psychological impacts, risk and protective factors that influence burnout, secondary trauma and resilience among mental health professionals in India have been reported. The review summarizes conceptual, methodological, and analytical gaps and generates recommendations that contribute to theoretical and practice-based improvements in this area of research and practice.