Psicotraumatology - Psychobiological fundamentals and relevance in medical practice

Code:

OPT178

Acronym:

PSICOTRAU

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Medicine

Instance: 2019/2020 - 1S (of 09-09-2019 to 09-02-2020)

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Clinical Neurosciences and Mental Health Department
Course/CS Responsible:	Integrated Master in Medicine

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
MIMED	4	Mestrado Integrado em Medicina- Plano oficial 2013 (Reforma Curricular)	5	-	1,5	14	40,5

Teaching language

Portuguese

Objectives

1. Educate and empower students with the tools necessary to identify and help patients to cope with the emotional and biological consequences of trauma and monitoring of normal responses;


2. Identify biological mechanisms of the relationship between trauma and physical illness; obesity, metabolic disease and traumatic events; autoimmune diseases and trauma; trauma and cancer;


3. Develop skills to identify acute stress disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder;

Increase the knowledge of resources and technical support to provide patients with traumatic experiences at risk of developing psychological and physical disorders; to learn the different therapeutic approaches in trauma response disorders.

Learning outcomes and competences

Acquiring knowledge about psychological trauma, adaptive and pathological reactions to traumatic events and identifying factors for the development of post-traumatic stress disorder will allow students to signal patients at risk and monitor their progress.

The ability to integrate neurobiological and immunological mechanisms involved in the reaction to trauma will facilitate the evaluation and early intervention in physical illnesses related to traumatic life events or with adversity in early life stages, namely cardiovascular, autoimmune and metabolic disorders.

The development of assessment skills and approach to the grieving process associated with significant losses will promote the ability to individualize the information to be provided and to negotiate a therapeutic plan involving the patient and their support systems, minimizing the possibility of a post-traumatic reaction dysfunctional

Working method

Presencial

Program

Traumatic events and psychological trauma

Information about how to recognize normal and pathological reactions to stressful and traumatic events;

Stages of grief and coping with loss; Identification of risk for long-term stress related conditions.

Responses to traumatic and stressful events that can have a negative impact on health: early trauma and obesity in adult life; inflammation, significant life events and disease;

Post traumatic disorders:

1. Biological mechanisms
2. Factors related to the subjective experience of the traumatic event and post-trauma variables
3. Clinical characterization

Therapeutic Approaches

Mandatory literature

Weiss, S. J. ; Neurobiological Alterations Associated with Traumatic Stress. Persp in Psych Care, 43: 114–122. doi:10.1111/j.1744-6163.2007.00120.x, 2007
Perkonigg, A., Kessler, R. C., Storz, S. and Wittchen, H.-U.; Traumatic events and post-traumatic stress disorder in the community: prevalence, risk factors and comorbidity. Acta Psych Scand, 101: 46–59. doi:10.1034/j.1600-0447.2000.101001046., 2000
Sherin, J. E., & Nemeroff, C. B.; Post-traumatic stress disorder: the neurobiological impact of psychological trauma. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 13(3), 263–278., 2011
Gillies, D., Taylor, F., Gray, C., O'Brien, L., D'Abrew, N. ; ) Psychological therapies for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 12. Art. No.: CD006726. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD006726.pub2., 2012
Dias, A., Sales, L., Hessen, D.J. et al. ; Child maltreatment and psychological symptoms in a Portuguese adult community sample: the harmful effects of emotional abuse. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 24: 767. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-014-0621-0, 2015
López-Martínez, A., Serrano-Ibáñez, E., Ruiz-Párraga, G., et al. ; Physical Health Consequences of Interpersonal Trauma: A Systematic Review of the Role of Psychological Variables. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse. Jul 25. pii: 1524838016659488., 2016

Teaching methods and learning activities

Seminars 2-hour week (Total 14 hours), including:

Theoretical Component - Theoretical introductory exposition of the programmatic contents, based on the revision of the relevant and updated scientific literature. Consultation and bibliographic collection.

Theoretical-practical component - Presentation and discussion of cases illustrated with exemplary didactic videos; discussion and identification by students of normal and pathological reactions to traumatic events; Observation of real and simulated situations. Contact and experimentation of some techniques of psychotherapeutic and pharmacological intervention

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation with final exam

Assessment Components

Designation	Weight (%)
Participação presencial	60,00
Exame	20,00
Trabalho escrito	20,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

Designation	Time (hours)
Estudo autónomo	26,50
Frequência das aulas	14,00
Total:	40,50

Eligibility for exams

Assiduity, active participation, attitude and professional behaviour (20%). Objective and standardized summative evaluation - mini tests on the theoretical component (60%) Development and integration of the acquired knowledge - Evaluation and response to simulated patients exposed to traumatic situations (20%)

Calculation formula of final grade

Assiduity, active participation, attitude and professional behaviour - 2 values

Objective and standardized summative evaluation - mini tests on the theoretical component - 16 values

Development and integration of the acquired knowledge - Evaluation and response to simulated patients exposed to traumatic situations - 2 values

final alculation: 2+16+2= 20 values