Investigating the impact of a psychoanalytic nursing development group within an adolescent psychiatric intensive care unit (PICU)

Foster, C

Abstract

Objective
To evaluate the impact of an adapted psychoanalytic work discussion group for mental health nurses working in adolescent PICU.

Background
There is no prior research investigating interventions that effectively support and enable adolescent PICU nursing teams to sustain the therapeutic tasks of their work and their own sense of wellbeing.

Methods
A bespoke psychoanalytic work discussion group was implemented within an adolescent PICU. Data was collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews with participants, about the impact of the group upon their practice. Data analysis used thematic analysis.

Results
The group positively impacted upon participant knowledge and understanding, emotion management, personal efficacy, therapeutic relationship building, managing challenging behaviour, leadership, professional identity and team cohesion.

Conclusion
Mechanisms by which these outcomes were achieved are elaborated utilising the concepts of projective identification, emotional containment and ‘temporary outsider-ship’. There is a need to account for the interplay between adolescent defense mechanisms, nursing anxieties and setting-specific organisational dynamics, in the design of effective support interventions for adolescent mental health nurses.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 31, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Oct 1, 2020
• Publication Date: Dec 1, 2020
• Deposit Date: Oct 5, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 1, 2021
• Journal: Archives of Psychiatric Nursing
• Print ISSN: 0883-9417
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Volume: 34
• Issue: 6
• Pages: 481-491
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnu.2020.08.008
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnu.2020.08.008
• Related Public URLs: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/archives-of-psychiatric-nursing/