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| Professor David Kissane AC |
Professor David Kissane, Head of
Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health (SCS) was
made a Companion of the Order of Australia in last week’s Australia Day Awards
for eminent service to psychiatry.
The prestigious Award recognises
Professor Kissane’s contribution to his field, particularly psycho-oncology and
palliative medicine, as an educator, researcher, author and clinician, and
through executive roles with a range of national and international professional
medical bodies.
Professor Kissane, who is also a
Monash Health consultant psychiatrist at Monash Medical Centre and McCulloch
House, has dedicated his career studying the psychological impact of cancer on
patients and their family, and has built a model of family-centred care to
support families at risk of poorer bereavement outcomes. He established the Australian evidence base
for the benefits of cancer support groups in reducing anxiety and depression
from the stress of cancer.
Professor Kissane said that perhaps
more than any other illness, cancer with its complicated biology and
challenging treatments can threaten patients and limit their coping. His
research into demoralization, its measurement and clinical recognition, leading
to the development of meaning-centred or existential psychotherapies as a
treatment, is held in very high regard internationally.
“There is much that clinicians need
to do to optimise coping and support people through this difficult experience
of illness,” Professor Kissane said.
Throughout
his career, Professor Kissane has conducted psychotherapy trials for
individuals, couples, groups and families in the cancer setting.
“There is a
great need to reduce fear and harness courage in dealing with cancer, to
sustain intimacy and support for couples, to optimize communication for
families, and foster group support for the isolated who might otherwise feel
alone,” he said.
In 1996, Professor Kissane became
the Foundation Chair of Palliative Medicine, University of Melbourne,
establishing the Centre for Palliative Care at St Vincent’s Hospital and the
Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute. In Victoria he established the educational
programs for palliative medicine and helped develop the discipline of
palliative care as a specialty.
In 2003, Professor Kissane became
Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Memorial
Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, America’s largest comprehensive
cancer center. Across the next decade, he grew this Department into the world’s biggest
and most comprehensive psycho-oncology program, helping to establish this
specialty that focuses on the psychological and behavioural care of the cancer
patient.
Author of
more than 350 publications and 7 books, Professor Kissane built a communication
training laboratory at Sloan-Kettering, which developed a curriculum to train
cancer surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists and palliative care
physicians to communicate empathically with their patients. Over 1000
clinicians were trained during his tenure.
“There is an
art to talking supportively about cancer as an illness, helping patients keep a
sense of mastery over their lives, sustaining hope in the face of adversity,
and preparing for the worst possible outcome while fighting for either a cure
or achieving control over this disease,” Professor Kissane said.
“Physicians
must be healers, accompanying each person and responding to his or her needs
with cultural sensitivity and insight into each patient’s unique personality.”
“Clinicians
need to enjoy being with their patients and understand them fully to be an
effective healer in their medical care.”
Professor
Kissane said his Award brings valuable attention to the needs of
psycho-oncology and palliative care, both young specialty disciplines within
medicine, both needing more government funding to build appropriate services,
both needing to train more clinicians in skills to deliver such care, and both
needing more public attention to achieve these goals.
