Effect of Critical Incident Stress Debriefings on Provider Wellbeing after Adverse Events in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at a Single Tertiary Care Hospital

Abstract

Critical incident stress debriefings (CISDs) were established at this institution in response to critical events. In this cross-sectional qualitative study, we aim to understand the impact of CISDs on provider well-being after an adverse outcome. The study population included 25 physicians, resident physicians, and nurse-midwives who participated in debriefings since their introduction in 2019 within the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at a single tertiary care hospital. An anonymous survey was sent to the study population with a response rate of 72% (n = 18). The majority of survey questions were positive statements regarding the beneficial effect of the CISD on provider well-being, and these statements were agreed with or strongly agreed with between 61.1% to 88.9% of the time. Of note, all of the responses that disagreed or strongly disagreed with these statements were from faculty participants. The one faculty member that disagreed with all positive statements responded that he/she sought additional support following this debriefing. None of the participants responded that the debriefing was a burden. Overall, the CISD was found to have a positive effect on provider well-being after adverse outcomes, especially in the resident physician group.