Emergency Medicine and PTSD with Sarah Spelsberg

In this series, we are bringing blog posts to life by
interviewing the authors. Also, by generating AI audio
conversations of the blog to make them accessible in audio
format. I then summarise the audio in conclusion.


We begin this episode by interviewing Dr. Sarah Spelsberg to add
context and personal insight behind an AI‑generated adaptation of
her latest RogueMed post, “Emergency Medicine and PTSD.” Through
her reflections, we explore how repeated exposure to trauma
profoundly affects emergency clinicians.


Dr. Spelsberg describes how witnessing death, severe injury,
suicides, resuscitations, violence, and patient suffering can
lead to chronic stress and PTSD. She highlights that up to 14.6 %
of emergency personnel experience PTSD symptoms, higher than
rates in police or firefighters. The pressure of balancing
life-or-death decision-making with systemic constraints crowded
EDs, insufficient staffing, and administrative burdens amplifies
emotional strain.


Our discussion focuses on the emotional toll of moral injury,
guilt, burnout, hypervigilance, flashbacks, insomnia, and
emotional exhaustion that haunt providers long after their shifts
end. Dr. Spelsberg emphasises that PTSD in emergency medicine
isn’t rare it’s predictable under these circumstances and
requires culturally appropriate recognition and care.


We explore evidence-backed strategies: trauma-informed debriefs,
peer support networks, access to psychological therapies like
cognitive behavioural therapy and EMDR, and cultivating a culture
that normalises seeking help. Dr. Spelsberg underscores that
organisational change revamping shift patterns, enhancing
supervision, and providing mental health resources is as crucial
as individual resilience.


By sharing lived experience and actionable solutions, this
episode reframes PTSD not as a weakness but as an expected
response needing compassion, systemic support, and meaningful
action. You can access the blog this podcast is based on here:
https://roguemed.medium.com/emergency-medicine-and-ptsd-e0841f945d55


My thanks to Sarah Spelsberg for this interview as a co-host of
The World Extreme Medicine podcast.





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