Survey Reveals That Renaming Post-Traumatic Stress 'Disorder' to 'Injury' Would Reduce Stigma

Background Self-stigmatization has an estimated prevalence of 41.2% among adults with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Since the name PTSD was introduced, arguments have been made that the term "disorder" may discourage patients from revealing their condition and seeking care. We hypothesize that renaming PTSD to post-traumatic stress injury (PTSI) would reduce the stigma associated with PTSD and improve patients' likelihood of seeking medical help. Methods An anonymous online survey was distributed by the Stella Center (Chicago, IL) between August 2021 and August 2022 to 3000 adult participants, of which 1500 were clinic patients and visitors. Another 1500 invitations were sent out to the Stella Center's website visitors. Results A total of 1025 subjects responded to the survey. The respondents were 50.4% female (51.6% had been diagnosed with PTSD) and 49.6% male (48.4% had been diagnosed with PTSD). Over two-thirds of the respondents agreed that a name change to PTSI would reduce the stigma associated with the term PTSD. Over half of the respondents agreed that it would increase their hope of finding a solution and their likelihood of seeking medical help. The cohort diagnosed with PTSD was most likely to believe in the impact of a name change. Conclusion This study provides significant insight into the potential impact of renaming PTSD to PTSI. The biggest effect is likely to be the reduction or elimination of stigma, followed by an increase in the hope of finding successful medical treatment for PTSD. The above changes will likely improve access to care and reduce suicidal ideation in a complex cohort.

Coping among public safety personnel: A systematic review and meta–analysis

Public safety personnel (PSP) are routinely exposed to potentially psychologically traumatic events (PPTEs) that, in turn, can result in posttraumatic stress injuries (PTSI), including burnout and increased symptoms of depression and anxiety. However, the longitudinal impact of PPTEs on PSP coping remains unclear. Coping can be operationalized as various strategies (i.e., behaviours, skills, thought and emotion regulation) for dealing with stressors, which are broadly categorized as either approach (adaptive, positive, social support) or avoidant coping strategies (maladaptive withdrawal, avoidance, substance use). This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to evaluate longitudinal coping outcomes among PSP. Thirteen eligible repeated-measures studies explicitly evaluated coping in 1854 police officers, firefighters, and rescue and recovery workers. Study designs included randomized-control trials, within-subject interventions and observational studies. Effect sizes (Cohen's d) at follow-up were described in 11 studies. Separate meta-analyses reveal small (d < 0.2) but non-significant improvements in approach and avoidant coping. Studies were of moderate quality and low risk of publication bias. Heterogeneity in outcome measures, follow-up durations, and study types precluded subgroup analyses. The current findings can inform the development and evaluation of organizational training programs that effectively promote sustained adaptive coping for PSP and mitigate PTSIs.

Veteran Treatments: PTSD Interventions

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has resulted in high social costs in terms of the lingering inability of veterans to adapt to societal norms. These costs accrue to individual veterans, their families, friends, and others. In addition, society suffers from the lost productivity of veterans. There is a need to pay greater attention to the extant literature regarding the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of various interventions. This study reviews the most relevant research regarding PTSD, veterans, interventions, treatment, counseling, job training and medication. Increasing awareness of the existing state of knowledge can lead to better targeting of resources and better health outcomes.