Stacey Parker - Integrated thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology
Keywords: Anxiety
PTSD
PTSS
fathers’ mental health
SRL Keywords: Traumatic childbirth
clinical psychologists
TDRP Keywords: Social identity
burnout
Depression
work-related stress
well-being
sickness leave
group membership
SIP Keywords: Staff well-being

Systematic Literature Review (SRL)
Childbirth is generally thought of as a joyous occasion. However, complications during birth can result in traumatic experiences for both parents. There is limited research focusing on the mental health impacts on fathers following witnessing traumatic childbirth. Consequently, it is unclear whether a trauma perspective is appropriate in this population, which may have clinical implications for interventions. This systematic literature review aimed to use a cognitive lens to explore the mental health outcomes following witnessing childbirth and the impacts on fathers’ cognitive appraisals, memory properties, and coping strategies. Five databases were searched, which resulted in 21 papers being included in this review. The review found that fathers presented with anxiety, stress, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomology, indicating some form of distress following witnessing childbirth. Additionally, fathers presented with intrusion and avoidance symptomology, and negative critical appraisals of the birth, providing some evidence for the use of a PTSD model in this population. However, there was little detail of event appraisals, memory properties and coping strategies, demonstrating the need for future research to expand on this.
Service Improvement Project (SIP)
Working with premature and critically ill infants can be both challenging and rewarding. Due to the complexity of this client group, staff can experience burnout and work-related stress. This is particularly pertinent in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) which receives infants regionally for life-saving treatment. This project aimed to establish a baseline of staff sickness leave, burnout and work-related stress and identify factors that contribute to this. 118 NICU staff completed a survey regarding their wellbeing and experiences of working on the NICU. Sickness leave data was collected from anonymised Human Resource data. Thematic analysis was used to analyse qualitative responses and non-parametric tests were used to analyse quantitative data. High levels of burnout and work-related stress were identified across all staffing disciplines. Themes yielded included: “no sad outcomes”; “I get by with a little help from my team”; “self-care is not selfish”; “one finger cannot lift a pebble”; “it’s the little things that matter”; “receiving care, giving care”; and “good start is half the work”. Staff described dissatisfaction with current ways of working, highlighting factors negatively impacting wellbeing.
Theory Driven Research Project (TDRP)
The Social Identity Model of Identity Change (SIMIC) suggests that gaining new identities, and maintaining group memberships can help individuals navigate life changes, such as transitioning from being a trainee to newly qualified clinical psychologist (NQCP). This project aimed to explore whether well-being following this transition is influenced by group memberships and strength of identification as an NQCP. Trainee clinical psychologists due to graduate were asked to complete a survey comprised of burnout, depression, anxiety and stress measures, and questions regarding group-membership, before repeating these 3-6 months into a qualified role. ANOVAs were run to explore the relationship between burnout and well-being, and NQCP identification. Correlations were conducted to explore relationships between group memberships and well-being. Content analysis was used to examine qualitative responses. Seventy-eight NQCPs completed surveys at timepoint two. Stronger identification as an NQCP was associated with lower burnout, but not well-being. No significant relationships between well-being measures and engagement with new group memberships were found. Factors that contributed to stronger identification as an NQCP include supervisor and clinical team support; familiarity with service; service context; workload; personal and previous experiences; and time following completion of doctorate.