Overview
Summary
This program utilises Art Therapy to support workforce wellbeing among Secure Mental Health Rehabilitation Unit (SMHRU) staff.
Dates: January 2026 - April 2026
Implementation sites: Gold Coast University Hospital
Partnerships: Nurses in Secure Mental Health Rehabilitation Unit (SMHRU)
Aim
The pilot program offers a scalable, workplace embedded model of staff support aligned with clinical excellence principles to demonstrating that brief creative interventions can enhance wellbeing and contribute to healthier, more connected nursing teams
Outcomes
In our pre-test and post-test Preliminary data collection-out of 15 respondents, 10 initially reported feeling “somewhat” or “moderately” stressed on arrival and reported feeling “not at all” stressed on the conclusion of the session.
Background
Mental health nurses experience persistent stressors within complex clinical environments, highlighting an ongoing need for innovative, accessible approaches to workforce wellbeing. Making As Medicine is a brief, opt in art therapy program implemented at the Secure Mental Health Rehabilitation Unit (SMHRU) to provide nursing staff with structured opportunities for reflective practice.
The program delivers 40-minute, single session group art therapy experiences for up to nine participants, with a focus on stress reduction, team cohesion, and strengthening professional identity. We developed these sessions to allow a space and protected time for nursing staff to build rapport with one another outside of task-focussed day-to-day interactions.
Methods
Brief Sessions (30-40 minutes) - during handover times, designed as stand-alone single sessions (due to shift time constraints and practicality), and offered weekly in small groups accommodating six to nine staff members. The program aimed to strengthen participants professional identity, while building stress-management skills, emotional regulation and supporting job satisfaction through meaning-making, self-compassion, and team cohesion.
The three sessions developed by the art therapist are:
- Body Mapping and Emotions (self-management of emotions and the mind/ body connection, creating an emotion character and engaging with it)
- ‘Make Your Mini’ (Strengths based playful exploration of professional identity)
- Team Tree A strengths based reflection on individual qualities each person brings to the team
- Outcomes were measured using the Self Expressive and Reflective Art Therapy Scale (SERAT) and the State Trait Anxiety Inventory
State 6 item version (STAI S 6) for staff self-rating of stress and emotional state before and after each session. On feedback nursing staff found having single session art therapy interventions helpful to de-stress, reset and connect together as a team. Participation was voluntary and confidential; de-identified data used for program evaluation.
Discussion
The pilot program offers a scalable, workplace embedded model of staff support aligned with clinical excellence principles, demonstrating that brief creative interventions can enhance wellbeing and contribute to healthier, more connected nursing teams.
Considerations included:
- logistics and managing nursing staff on a roster
- finding protected time for the maximum number of staff to engage as much as they wished to engage
- managing staff perceptions of art/ art therapy (for example, perceiving that they are not ‘creative’ and therefore opting out based on perceptions of what art therapy is designed for)
Multiple meetings took place between art therapy and nurse educator to discuss the logistics and the best way to deliver the pilot program. Sessions were delivered as single, stand-alone sessions, with three different art therapy interventions on offer across the pilot program. The nurse educator, Shereen, managed staff attendance and rostering to support the widest number of participants. We believe nursing staff across different units could benefit from tailored art therapy sessions designed to support wellbeing and team cohesion proactively.
Mental health nurses in particular face significant challenges in their day-to-day roles and we can foresee scope to expand the program and deliver it as an opt-in team program across GCUH.
We would like to continue the pilot with a larger sample size to continue collecting data and feedback, and to be able to offer this more broadly as a health service. (Delivery does not affect employment or performance reviews. Group agreements emphasize psychological safety, choice, and opt-out from sharing artwork.)
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References
Tjasink, M., et al. (2023). Art therapy-based interventions to address burnout and psychosocial distress in healthcare workers-a systematic review. BMC Health Services Research.
Joschko, R., et al. (2024). Active visual art therapy and health outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Network Open.
Tjasink, M., et al. (2025). Art therapy to reduce burnout and mental distress in healthcare professionals: a randomized controlled trial. BMJ Public Health.( A recent multicentre RCT in UK hospitals found six weekly group art therapy sessions significantly reduced emotional exhaustion (MBI), depersonalization, perceived stress, anxiety, and depression, with benefits sustained at 3 months.).
Ho, A.H.Y., et al. (2021). Mindful-Compassion Art-Based Therapy for healthcare workers: a waitlist randomized control trial. Frontiers in Psychology.
Key contact
Alana Sawrey
Art Therapist
Gold Coast University Hospital - Mental Health Services
Gold Coast Health