RU OK Day is approaching falling on Thursday 8 September and every year I consider the team around me and how they are feeling. Are there any signs of distress or areas of concern? As a HR practitioner am I available often enough, and am I training leaders to remain aware, to show compassion and empath? And then the day passes…..
Mental Health and the Psychological Safety must be a priority for all leaders and HR practitioners. It’s amazing how quickly an event can affect an individual and how they can internalise, become unusally quiet, try and remain invisible and hope that no one notices. Our obligation to our people doesn’t make us mind readers nor responsible to hold everyone up, all the time. But it does help to watch for signs that something is amiss and that a conversation may be incredibly helpful.
I recently watched a video that explained what that conversation would look like. The speaker must remain low key, speak with the employee in an authentic way, ask short focused questions to get them talking and essentially, let it be about them (in other words, your situation is not relevant nor does it need to be discussed). Taking the coaching approach rather than bringing in your experiences and how you feel is essential. This is a very simple and powerful concept.
Here at CareCFO, we place the welfare of our employees as a high priority. If something seems out of place a conversation takes place. RU OK is a daily routine for leaders. Not that they ask the person every single day, but most importantly, they observe, and they take action if required.
To celebrate RU OK day in 2022 we are holding our first seminar on this topic to support the care environment. Too often the focus is on the residents and participants, as it should be, but our employees are also a very high priority.
Managing Mental Health in a Care Leadership Environment is designed to assist managers with this complex issue. We look at research completed in this field and offer support and advice on how to manage from a practical and empathetic level whilst maintaining a professional work environment.
So, I welcome you to join me on Wednesday 7 September 2022 from 1pm to 3pm to discuss this important topic and learn how you can make a real difference as a leader to support your team members in a helpful and authentic way.