Brenda Happell is internationally recognised as a mental health nursing education and research leader. She is Professor of Mental Health, Southern Cross University, Honorary Professor of Nursing at the University of Newcastle and Director of Happell Consulting.  Brenda is passionate about mental health nursing and particularly how it can be enriched through genuine partnerships with Experts by Experience.

Brenda’s most recent book, Bullying in Nursing and Other Health Professions, addresses the real-life impact of bullying on mental and physical health.

Brenda has worked in Victoria, Queensland, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and New South Wales. She has published approximately 500 journal articles, four books and three book chapters. She has attracted $15 million in competitive funding. Brenda has held senior university positions including inaugural Director of the Centre for Psychiatric Nursing at the University of Melbourne, Director of the Institute for Health and Social Science Research at Central Queensland University and Professor of Nursing and Executive Director of SYNERGY, Nursing and Midwifery Research Centre at the University of Canberra and ACT Health. 

Brenda is a Board Director, Fellow and Life Member of the Australian College of Mental Health Nurses (ACMHN), and an Equally Well Ambassador, actively promoting the importance of physical health for people diagnosed with mental illness. She is a current Director on the Nurse Midwife Health Program Australia’s Board, and a former Director on the Mansfield District Hospital Board.

Please tell us a little about yourself and your research interests. What is the focus of your publications, and why are they so important to convey to the academic community as well as practitioners?

I have had many research interests throughout my career. Contributing to humane and quality care is characteristic of them all. The role of mental health consumers in the education of health professionals, improving physical health for people accessing mental health services, and specialist mental health nursing education are my primary areas of research interest. I am a firm believer that a healthy mental health service system cannot occur if staff members are experiencing stress, burnout or a toxic work culture.

What inspired you to write this book about bullying in nursing and other health professions? What was it that interested you about the topic of mental health when you began your career?

I have been interested in people, their attitudes and behaviors for as long as I can remember. People fascinated me. Even ones I didn’t like. I wanted to understand them better. I completed a Bachelor of Arts with honors in sociology. For various reasons, I decided to train as a nurse. I completed the hospital program with a clear understanding that health services could be improved with more person-centred care. The psychiatric ward was my favorite placement. After working in drug and alcohol services, I became acutely aware of the need for mental health nursing skills and undertook a 15-month course in psychiatric nursing (as it was then). After a period of clinical work, I began my academic career, which has continued for more than 35 years.

During my career, I experienced and witnessed bullying on more occasions than I could remember. Most was subtle. I tended to dismiss this as the poor behavior of some individuals. In my last full-time role, the bullying had become so bad, I made the decision to retire from full-time work. I was continually being micro-managed and excluded from important decision-making processes. Resources were being removed or reduced without explanation or discussion. As much as the experiences were painful, they held a degree of fascination for me. Most of my bullying came from health professionals, and frequently, mental health professionals. I could not understand how people who had chosen a career based on promoting good health and well-being could behave this way, could demonstrate such cruelty to their colleagues. Some were amazing clinicians and well-respected academics. Why so many left these skills at the door when interacting with colleagues, absolutely failed me. Sickness in Health came into my head. As part of my post-retirement healing process, I knew I couldn’t just let this go. My negative experiences had to contribute to something useful. I decided to write a book, with the hope that this work might be useful to those experiencing bullying. I could have written this book based on my experiences alone. I chose not to do that. I wanted readers to see how bullying affects real people, not just the rant of one individual. I also wanted to talk to others, to see how their experiences were similar and different. Over time, I was fortunate to talk to 12 wonderful health professionals. The conversations we had were at times emotional for us all. They shared so much about their experiences and how their lives had been changed. The impact had been profound, leading to broken relationships, suicidal thoughts, and even suicide attempts. Despite the distress of relaying deeply hurtful and distressing experiences, these people also found the experience valuable. Many had not discussed their experiences with their peers before these conversations.

How do you incorporate the understanding and management of mental health practices for nurses and other health professionals into professional education, and what initiatives should be taken to raise awareness among future healthcare professionals?

I believe it is very important to teach nursing students about the importance of their own self-care. Gaining an understanding of bullying in all its forms, particularly the more subtle forms, should be included in curricula and reinforced throughout the program duration. Unfortunately, a high proportion of nurses leave the profession due to bullying and toxic cultures. Bullying will not go away simply because we ignore it. We need to educate future students about bullying and its consequences. Most importantly, we need to encourage nurses to recognize bullying and to take care of themselves when they are bullied. Unfortunately, there are no quick and easy solutions to this problem, which is deeply rooted in the cultures of many health services and universities. Health professionals may not be able to protect themselves from being bullied, but hopefully, we can begin to grow a more positive culture within organizations. A culture that allows health professionals to feel safe and confident to provide the high standard of care their organization strives to achieve. The ultimate beneficiaries of a health workforce are those who use these services, their families and other loved ones. They will receive a higher standard of care from a happy and confident workforce. Everyone deserves the highest possible quality of healthcare. Individuals and organizations have the responsibility to make this happen. 

With International Nurses Day 2025 approaching, what message or key insights would you like to share with the public, patients, and healthcare professionals about the significance of addressing mental health in nursing and health professions, and how individuals can contribute to raising awareness and supporting those affected?

In recent times, there has been considerably more attention paid to the importance of mental health. There are more public conversations, reflecting the desire to reduce stigma and discrimination towards people accessing mental health services. Although there’s a long way to go, these conversations are very welcome. Nursing and other health professions are appealing careers to people who want to contribute to the health and well-being of others, often in the most vulnerable times in their lives. Working as a health professional can be incredibly rewarding, but it can also be exhausting and emotionally draining. Nurses tend to soldier on, putting their patients first until the situation becomes untenable due to stress, anxiety, burnout or bullying, and sometimes all four. At this point, many leave the profession, worsening the recruitment crisis and further contributing to toxic workplace environments. Nurses and other health professionals must recognise the need to be kind to themselves and their colleagues. I would urge them to support any colleagues who are victims of bullying. I would recommend considering the potential implications of ‘standing up’ to bullies, as they may become the next target. However, even covert support is very important to victims. I would also encourage victims of bullying to seek mental health support through their employer assistance program, where available, or private services. I honestly don’t know how I would have made it through my own bullying experiences without counselling. I wish I had started it much sooner. To those who witness bullying, don’t tell your colleague to ‘just get over it,’ ‘forgive and forget,’ or ‘just leave’. How to deal with bullying is a difficult process, and this well-meaning but flippant response tends to make the victim feel worse instead of better.

Every single health care professional can contribute to a more positive workplace culture. The changes may be small, but hopefully they will build and become more influential with time. As Margaret Mead, a famous anthropologist, said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

For a selection of Springer Nature books, journal articles, ISRCTN clinical study registrations and blog posts chosen by our publishers and registry editors for International Nurses Day, check out our highlights campaign.