Electrical injury through the eyes of professional electricians.

This paper presents the first results of an attitudinal survey that was conducted among professional electricians in order to explore their knowledge and beliefs related to occupational electrical injury. Four hundred eighty-one out of 1200 questionnaires were returned and analyzed. The presented statistical and qualitative data reflect electricians' personal experiences with electrical injury, their communication patterns around electrical trauma, their understanding of possible electrical injury sequelae, their safety beliefs and attitudes towards occupational dangers, and the reasons for their occupational choice. We expect that the results of this study will enhance our understanding of the psychological profile, environment, and culture of electrical workers. The collected data may also help to identify those at risk for poor outcome after electrical injury and determine a new set of risk factors to be taken into account by medical professionals, social workers, and union/utility training officers.

Life after electrical injury. Risk factors for psychiatric sequelae.

Long-term cognitive and emotional deficits have been commonly reported in electrical injury (EI) survivors. However, it remains undetermined what factors may lead to the development of such effects in some patients and not in others. In this study, we hypothesized that certain elements of subjective EI experience may predict specific psychiatric sequelae. A group of 73 post-acute EI patients were included in this retrospective study. Statistical associations were examined between major psychiatric diagnoses (posttraumatic stress disorder and major depression) and such EI descriptors as having experienced "no-let-go" or having been knocked away on contact, as well as loss of consciousness or altered states of consciousness at the scene of the accident (including amnesia for the event). The study results will help physicians determine which patients may be at increased risk of developing psychiatric symptoms and address these issues as part of their total rehabilitation plan.