4. Post-conflict care

A victim who has experienced some form of violence can be mentally and physically agitated. The situation after the attack - both for the patient and the healthcare professional - can be approached by proving a certain crisis situation (crisis). Some of us can experience some type of crisis during our lives, and each of us experiences it differently. Accroding to the research of Davis, C. G., Lehman, D. R., Silver, R. C., Wortman, C. B., & Ellard, J. H. (1996) who analysed empirical studies on the impact of difficult life situations, the following can be deduced:

1. People's reactions to the crisis does not exist in any predictable form. It is possible to expect that such emotional states as shock, denial, anger and depression will appear, but not all of them will have to occur in a crisis situation.

2. There is some consensus that adaptation to a crisis situation takes place in the following successive phases: shock, denial, anger and aggression, depression and acceptance. These phases are analogous to the Kübler-Ross model. However, the phases do not occur in the exact sequence as described but, they can overlap, some of them can be skipped by clients and others are returned to repeatedly.

3. It is usually assumed that some time after a critical event, people will eventually come to terms with it.

Klimpl (1998) adds that in the initial phase (shock), the individual focuses mainly on controlling anxiety impulses and does not devote energy to finding solutions to the crisis. The mobilization of defense mechanisms occurs later, self-destructive tendencies or suicidal behavior may occur. Only then is one able to develop further and it is possible to see the positive consequences of the crisis.

Thus, there is great variability between people's reactions to adverse life events. In particular, research has found that social support, the ability to find some meaning in the crisis and experience with previous stressors have a positive effect on coping with the crisis.

The course of the crisis, its management and its impact on individuals is influenced by many factors. These include age, family background, personality characteristics, value system, gender, health status, ability to cope with difficult life situations, religious beliefs and also hope (Špatenková et al., 2011).