Neonatal staff virtual debriefs: tips and pitfalls
This article describes our experiences of running a three-month pilot programme of psychology-led virtual and hybrid debriefs (including virtual and face-to-face participants) on our tertiary neonatal unit. Challenges, successes and participant feedback are summarised. We make practical recommendations on how to successfully implement psychology-led staff debriefs using a virtual platform, and propose virtual and hybrid debriefs as potential alternatives to face-to-face neonatal unit staff debriefing.
Sarah Chan
Locum Neonatal Consultant
sarah.walton@nhs.net
Sarah-Jane Archibald
Clinical Psychologist
Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

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- Literature evidence and national guidance recommends neonatal staff debrief following distressing clinical cases.
- There is scant evidence on holding virtual debriefs and their impact on staff attendees.
- We ran a virtual debrief pilot programme on our NICU for neonatal and associated specialty staff. The sessions were co-chaired by the NICU’s clinical psychologist and a neonatal consultant.
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