Post-traumatic stress symptoms and post-traumatic growth among fertility physicians

Physicians frequently encounter stressors and traumatic events in their daily work, which can result in adverse outcomes such as post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), but also in the experience of positive changes, i.e. post-traumatic growth (PTG). Most research on PTSS and PTG has primarily focused on physicians from specific medical fields (e.g. emergency medicine), whereas others, such as fertility specialists, received less attention. Their unique role involves daily stress due to caring for individuals and couples seeking to conceive, following repeated failure. This study aims to enhance our understanding of fertility specialists' experiences by examining the contribution of event centrality, rumination and perceived control, considered as cognitive mechanisms, to PTSS and PTG. To that end, 108 fertility specialists aged 33 to 83 (M = 52.90) and completed self-report questionnaires. Confirming our hypotheses, being women, greater event centrality, more intrusive rumination and lower sense of control were significantly associated with higher PTSS. Greater event centrality and more deliberate rumination were significantly related to higher PTG. Both positive and negative outcomes are potential responses to stress and may be determined by similar cognitive aspects. The findings may assist in developing effective interventions and policies to manage and mitigate work-related stress among fertility physicians.