
Cover Letter

Invitation to be Part of a Research Study

You are invited to participate in a research study entitled:  Medical Trauma and Coping Mechanisms

Study Details

•	The purpose of the study is to examine the coping mechanisms employed by people with Medical Trauma.
•	The anticipated number of participants in the study is 200.
•	Participation is voluntary. You may withdraw at any time without penalty. 
•	No alternative procedures are offered for this study, except that you may refuse to answer any question, and you may terminate the study at any point with no harm to yourself.
•	If you agree to take part in this study, you will be asked to complete the following: a demographic questionnaire, rate themselves on three Subjective Units of Distress Scale rating scales for depression, PTSD, and anxiety, complete the Medical Questionnaire, and the Coping Scale.
•	Participation is expected to take approximately 15 minutes.

Risks/Benefits

•	Participation in the study may cause some slight discomfort. If you should feel any emotional discomfort please contact your medical doctor, or text 988 for crisis lifeline, or text HOME to 741741.
•	While there may be no direct benefit to you, the research will help us learn more about the coping styles of individuals with medical trauma.

Anonymity/Confidentiality

All study data will be anonymous, meaning no personal identifiers will be collected. As a research participant, the information you provide will be kept anonymous; that is, no names or other identifiers will be collected. Your opinions will be collected via an anonymous online survey tool, PsychData. The following description outlines PsychData’s policies with respect to confidentiality and data security: “PsychData is specifically designed to meet and exceed industry standards for Internet security as well as IRB standards for the protection of research participants. Our servers, database, and web presence employ multiple forms of enterprise-level security features to accomplish these goals. PsychData utilizes Secure Socket Layer (SSL) 256-bit encryption technology to ensure the protection of all data transactions on our website. Data is encrypted at the instant that a user submits it and can only be decoded by the target server. PsychData maintains an SSL certificate from VeriSign, the industry leader in SSL technology.” In addition, PsychData allows for disabling IP address collection, thereby assuring that the results I will receive will be truly anonymous, and there will be no record kept of your IP address or linkages I could utilize to identify you. Upon completion of data collection, all electronic data will be downloaded and then deleted from the PsychData server.
•	Electronic data will be stored on password-protected computers.
•	Hard copy data will be locked in a researcher’s office. 
•	All data will be kept indefinitely OR for at least five years following completion of the study.
•	 If it becomes necessary to destroy the data later, electronic data will be destroyed by double-deleting from the hard drive and the Recycle Bin. Hard copy data will be shredded.

Use of Data in the Future

•	The data, with identifiers removed, may also be used in future research or distributed to another investigator without additional informed consent. 

Contact Information if You Have Questions about the 
Research or Your Rights as a Research Participant

•	Brandon Hernandez, 786-417-9005, brandon.hernandez1@mymail.barry.edu
•	Dr. Linda Bacheller, 305-899-4576, lbacheller@barry.edu
•	IRB point of contact, Ms. Anoush McNamee at 305-899-3020, amcnamee@barry.edu

This study has been reviewed by Barry University's IRB and given approval: IRB 2404860-2

Voluntary Consent

If you are willing to participate in this research, please signify your consent by clicking the “Yes” button below.


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COVER LETTER

page1

question2

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GENDER

question4

Ethnicity

question5

Education

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Relationship

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Rate each statement: 1=Strongly Disagree to 5 Strongly Agree

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Have you ever had a serious accident
at work, in a car, or somewhere else?

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Have you ever been exposed to dangerous chemicals or radioactivity that might
threaten your health? 

question9

Have you ever been in any other situation in which you were seriously injured?

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Have you ever had a serious or life-threatening illness?

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Since my medical procedure/diagnosis, I have had to alter my life plan.

question12

Since my medical procedure/diagnosis, I have been unable to reach important
milestones.

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Since my medical procedure/diagnosis, I feel more negative about myself.

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Since my medical procedure/diagnosis, I feel more negative about my abilities.

question15

Since my medical procedure/diagnosis, I have noticed strain on my relationships with
others.

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Since my medical procedure/diagnosis, I have noticed negative effects on my
career/educational performance. 

question17

Since my medical procedure/diagnosis, I struggle with thoughts about what it all
means for me and my life.

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Since my medical procedure/diagnosis, I have noticed changes in my ability to do
things I once did for fun/health/relaxation.

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I am fearful about receiving medical treatment.

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I worry about an upcoming medical procedure or diagnosis.

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I feel that my life or well-being could be threatened by my medical condition or
upcoming procedure.

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Medical Trauma Questionnaire

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How depressed do you feel? (0=not at all to 10=sad all the time)

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How anxious do you feel? (0=not all all to 10=anxious all the time)

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How often do you suffer from any of the following: flashbacks, nightmares, avoidance of triggers, negative changes in mood, isolation, guilt, easily startled, irritability, or insomnia?(0=not at all to 10=all the time)

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Subjective Units of Distress

Indicate what YOU usually do when experiencing a stressful event (1=I usually don't do this at all, 2=I usually do this a little bit, 3=I usually do this a medium amount, and 5=I usually do this a lot)

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I try to grow as a person as a result of the experience.

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I turn to work or other substitute activities to take my mind off things.

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I get upset and let my emotions out.

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I try to get advice from someone about what to do.

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I concentrate my efforts on doing something about it.

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I say to myself "this isn't real."

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I put my trust in God.

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I laugh about the situation.

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I admit to myself that I can't deal with it, and quit trying.

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I restrain myself from doing anything too quickly. 

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I discuss my feelings with someone.

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I use alcohol or drugs to make myself feel better. 

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I get used to the idea that it happened.

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I talk to someone to find out more about the situation.

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I keep myself from getting distracted by other thoughts or activities

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I daydream about things other than this.

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I get upset, and am really aware of it.

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I seek God's help.

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I make a plan of action. 

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I make jokes about it. 

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I accept that this has happened and that it can't be changed.

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I hold off doing anything about it until the situation permits.

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I try to get emotional support from friends or relatives.

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I just give up trying to reach my goal. 

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I take additional action to try to get rid of the problem.

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I try to lose myself for a while by drinking alcohol or taking drugs.

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I refuse to believe that it has happened.

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I let my feelings out.

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I try to see it in a different light, to make it seem more positive.

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I talk to someone who could do something concrete about the problem.

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I sleep more than usual.

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I try to come up with a strategy about what to do.

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I focus on dealing with this problem, and if necessary let other things slide a little.

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I get sympathy and understanding from someone.

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I drink alcohol or take drugs, in order to think about it less.

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I kid around about it.

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I give up the attempt to get what I want.

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I look for something good in what is happening.

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I think about how I might best handle the problem.

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I pretend that it hasn't really happened.

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I make sure not to make matters worse by acting too soon.

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I try hard to prevent other things from interfering with my efforts at dealing with this.

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I go to movies or watch TV, to think about it less.

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I accept the reality of the fact that it happened.

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I ask people who have had similar experiences what they did.

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I feel a lot of emotional distress and I find myself expressing those feelings a lot.