Abstract

Second victims are clinical personnel who have participated in the occurrence of an adverse event (AE), and sometimes not adequately supported. Literature evidence the institution involved must be concerned in its correct management and to prevent its consequences. Objective: To describe the reality of the second victims in a Chilean university hospital. Material and Methods: Descriptive, quantitative, retrospective, cross-sectional, randomized study, developed in a 495-bed, high-complex academic urban hospital in Santiago de Chile. The literature was reviewed and a survey for second victims was adapted to the local reality and applied according to a randomized and stratified sample. Results: 191 people were surveyed, 66% female, 56% in the age group of 31-50 years. More than 50% think that AE is attributable to the person; 80% reports not having the training to inform the occurrence of an AE, about 90% believe that there is a low or medium probability of an AE occurring in near time, 58 % expressed interest in participating in support groups for second victims. Discussion: Our results evidence the perception of health personnel regarding adverse events. Most consider it an individual and not an institutional issue; that reporting an adverse event exposes healthcare personnel to a complaint, and that they do not have the competencies to share information about AE with patients or family members. We consider to create a multidisciplinary group relevant, to support staff affected by an AE; the institution must prevent and manage these events and promote the care of its involved health personnel.