Stability and complexity in psychiatric inpatient care

Working conditions for staff in psychiatric inpatient care with a special focus on psychiatric intensive care units (PICU) includes meetings with patients with acute mental illness. In their daily work environments, the staff is exposed to patients' different forms of expression in their failing health - an environment that is unpredictable, complex, and where hints of threats and violence occur. When working life varies on the basis of these conditions, this makes extensive demands on caregivers to maintain professional, ethical and caring approaches.

Creating stability is a necessity for caregivers to contribute to patients' improvement but also to a safe workplace. My current research investigates how and by what methods stability is created. Among the objectives, studies aim to contribute to the development of both the theoretical and practical knowledge of the working and care environments in psychiatric inpatient care. Identifying problems, needs, barriers and opportunities related to the project lead to significant knowledge concerning the staff’s psychosocial work environment in their daily lives at work.