Dr Debbie Ling is a Lecturer in the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Monash University.

Research interests

Her research interests include compassion, common humanity, in-group/out-group distinctions, prosocial behaviour, compassion in healthcare, doctor burnout, training interventions and mental health. Debbie is interested in qualitative and quantitative approaches to research. Debbie is currently a contributor to grants worth $541,545.

Debbie’s doctoral research (PhD awarded 2019) involved investigating the relationship between the perception of common humanity and compassion in healthcare workers. Her research produced world first empirical evidence that the perception of common humanity leads to an increase in compassion in healthcare workers. She also developed, trialled and evaluated a single session compassion training intervention for healthcare workers. Her doctoral research has been published internationally and presented at conferences in the USA, UK and Ireland. Debbie is regularly requested to present on compassion training to hospitals and community organisations locally and internationally.

Debbie led the development of the Monash University "Compassion Training for Healthcare Workers" self-paced online course released 2022. The course is open to all and takes an evidence based approach including: (i) the science that underpins compassion (ii) difference between compassion and empathy and how compassion can protect against empathic distress and burnout (iii) strategies for managing when compassion is challenging and (iv) how heightening the perception of common humanity improves sense of connection, patient care, one's own wellbeing and job satisfaction.

The course won the 2022 Monash University Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences Dean's Award for Excellence in Education - Industry and Community Education Programs (Teams) and received a special commendation at the 2022 Vice-Chancellor's Awards for Excellence. There have been bulk enrolments from multiple health networks. Over 2000 healthcare workers and students have completed the compassion course as at June 2024. The compassion course was piloted on n=500 final year medical students in the Monash University Medical degree in 2023 and is now core compulsory curriculum for medical students at Monash Uni and Warwick Uni (UK). Awarded a 2023 Monash-Warwick Alliance grant to do a mixed methods evaluation of the course on 720 medical students at Warwick University and Monash University. 

Debbie sits on the Australian Compassion Council, Charter for Compassion Australia and is also the International Healthcare Sector Co-Lead for the Charter for Compassion global division. Debbie also sits on the advisory board for the Centre for a Compassionate Society.

In addition to her academic and research roles, Debbie is also a social worker at Epworth HealthCare and an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker in private practice. Debbie has over 25 years’ direct practice experience in a range of fields of practice including health, mental health, child protection, crisis work, schools, disability and aged care. She has undertaken additional training in family therapy, grief and loss, conflict resolution and mindfulness-based approaches.