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Stefan Frühwald

Publications and source records attributed to Stefan Frühwald.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

[How do community-based mental health staff in Austria perceive their job? -- a qualitative study].

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore, using a simple qualitative design, how community mental health staff in Austria perceive their job. METHOD: 195 community-based mental health professionals answered seven open questions on how they perceive their job. The main areas covered were the most important tasks of the job, skills necessary to perform these tasks, as well as positive and negative aspects of the job. Answers were subjected to thematic content analysis. RESULTS: For most professionals, contact with clients and team colleagues were the major rewards of the job. Aspects experienced as stressful were the clients' illness, role ambiguity, team conflicts and lack of time. Necessary skills many respondents did not feel competent in were specialised knowledge and psychosocial skills. CONCLUSIONS: It might be useful to revise existing forms of collaboration within multiprofessional teams. The responsibility for difficult patients may be shared by several members of the team, who should contribute their specific knowledge. Training should be tailored towards the needs of the different professional groups and focus on those skills that are required in community mental health care.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed2006

[Suicide behind bars -- an international review].

OBJECTIVE: International surveys found an increase of mentally disordered individuals in correctional institutions. As a consequence, suicides and suicide rates in jails and prisons are increasing. Mental health services and criminal justice authorities have identified this problem, but there is a lack of knowledge concerning risk factors for inmate suicides and practicable prevention. METHOD: A literature research was conducted through "medline" searching for studies addressing the problem of jail and/or prison suicide. Subsequently, results of relevant surveys were compared and depicted in several tables. RESULTS: Suicide rates in correctional facilities significantly exceed those in the general male population. Suicide rates in custody have been increasing within the last decades. Pre-trial prisoners have the highest suicide risk within the total prison population. Long-term sentences, single-cell use, mental illness, substance abuse and a history of suicidality are associated with an increased suicide risk. DISCUSSION: The impact of suicide prevention strategies and future directions of research in this high-risk setting are highlighted.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

[Job satisfaction and burnout in professionals in austrian mental health services].

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore job satisfaction, professional role and burnout among community mental health staff in Austria. METHODS: The Minnesota Job Satisfaction Questionnaire, the GHQ-12, the Maslach Burnout Inventory and a questionnaire exploring staff's professional role and team identity were administered to 195 community-based mental health professionals in two Austrian regions. Staff's job perception was assessed in open questions. Predictors of burnout scores were identified in multivariate analyses. RESULTS: While the mental health professionals had elevated scores on the GHQ-12, their levels on the three burnout subscales were low. Social workers and psychologists showed the lowest job satisfaction, social workers also had low role identity scores. Being in the current job for a short time and disposing of psychosocial skills were predictors of high job satisfaction. High burnout scores were predicted by the lack of basic psychosocial competence and a lack of general knowledge in mental health care. The effect of caseload on psychological well-being was positive as well as negative. CONCLUSIONS: Even if the mental health professionals in our study show high levels of general stress, they seem to have less emotional problems resulting from extensively dealing with troubled individuals. Improving basic psychosocial competence and general expertise in mental health care might have a protective effect against developing a burnout syndrome.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

[Psychosocial characteristics of victims of suicide in prisons].

BACKGROUND: Besides some cases reported by the media in recent years about prison inmates who committed suicide, hardly anything is known concerning social, criminological and psychiatric characteristics of suicide victims in jails and prisons in Austria. It therefore seems necessary to evaluate jail and prison suicides in order to establish effective means of prevention. METHODS: A study was conducted evaluating all suicides in Austrian prisons between 1975 and 1999. In addition to nationality, education and working status, other indicators of social integration and psychiatric history of suicide victims were studied. RESULTS: 220 personal files of 250 suicides were available. During the observation period the suicide rate of imprisoned foreigners decreased slightly (mean 106.6/100,000), whereas the suicide rate of Austrian citizens increased significantly (mean 172.0/100,000). Of all suicide victims, 41% had neither finished school nor had they any professional education. 44% were unemployed before incarceration, 50% did not work while incarcerated. A high frequency of suicidal behavior amongst suicide victims before committing suicide (49% suicide attempts, 37% suicide threats), and a high prevalence of mental disorders (37% psychopharmacological treatment, 48.6% were assessed by a psychiatrist) could be detected. CONCLUSIONS: Screening instruments should be applied which are easy to handle for prison officers and indicate the appropriate management of inmates at a high suicide risk.

Adult↗