Logan Hospital is breaking new ground in patient care with the introduction of a psychology service to its Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
While common practice overseas, incorporating psychology in Australian ICU’s remains rare—something psychologist Jess Hampton hopes will change over time.
Jess, who is leading the initiative at Logan Hospital, said critical care psychology research was still in its infancy and its findings would take time to translate into common practice.
She identified the opportunity for an ICU psychology service when the hospital’s inpatient psychology team received its first referral from the ICU.
“Until then, our team was only covering a few medical and surgical wards,” she said.
“"With no prior ICU experience, I found limited evidence on psychologists in Australian ICUs, despite their presence in critical care internationally.
“ICU patients face immense physical and emotional challenges and integrating psychological support helps address and prioritise both.”
The holistic approach benefits more than just patients with staff and carers also noting a positive impact on their ability to manage the emotional toll of working in the often-confronting ICU environment.
While the benefits were clear, the rollout faced initial challenges—none of which could deter the dedicated healthcare professionals.
Jess said the ICU team were crucial to the success of the initiative, with all parties working collaboratively to ensure it gained traction.
“Along with getting staff accustomed to the idea of having a psychologist present in the ICU, we had to adapt to the ICU environment with no prior experience in critical care settings,” Jess said.
“We needed to offer flexible, short-term interventions to address immediate stressors like trauma and nightmares, which is a very different approach to the longer-term focus of psychology in other areas.”
Although the service is still in its early stages, the psychologists had already received excellent anecdotal feedback from patients, families, and staff.
Jess’ passion for the initiative has led her to commence a PhD to scientifically evaluate its impact.
“I am so thankful to the SERTA Metro South Research Support Scheme Novice Researcher Grant that enabled my capacity to commence research in this field.”