Praise is being given to a new team set up to help NHS staff through the global pandemic and beyond.
A total of nine new staff wellbeing specialists have now began work within the Staff Care and Wellbeing service.
The new roles follow the phenomenal success of redeployed members of staff who provided help and support during the peak of the pandemic. They worked round the clock to make sure that staff had help when they needed it the most, were there for each other and helped guide teams through an anxious and unpredictable time.
The new roles now give dedicated support to all health and social care staff working across Lanarkshire.
Paul Graham, Head of spiritual care and wellbeing said: “At the start of the pandemic, there was incredible anxiety about the unknown that lay ahead of us and we realised we needed to do something different.
“We trained over 60 peer supporters who had been redeployed to our service. This enabled us to establish staff rest centres, a 24-hour helpline and we started setting up different mechanisms to provide support and easier access to the support.
“Patients are at the heart of everything that we do. But our staff must be our top priority and our staff have been our top priority.”
The new staff wellbeing specialists have now begun work, supporting a wide range of staff across the organisation.
Paul added “We spent 5-6 weeks on intensive 1:1 and group training with the new team as they were making connections with teams across NHS Lanarkshire, our two HSCP’s and care homes. Staff Care Specialists are available via the 24 Hr helpline and also through the wellbeing hubs on the three acute sites. They have also been dealing with people on a one to one basis and have been answering the calls on the helpline.
“The staff have been trained in different areas to help support as much as they can. They have been trained in critical incident stress management techniques, group work and values based reflective practice.
“The team help support a range of different NHS Lanarkshire staff. This included medics, team leaders, people who are still working from home and all different areas of health and social care.
“They have worked tirelessly to make sure that staff and teams are supported, especially as many folks are feeling the toll of working in a pandemic for over a year. Colleagues have welcomed the opportunity to have a safe place to share their stories and get some perspective on what they’re living a working through. “
The Staff Care service is available for all, and can be contacted 24 Hrs on 01698 752000.
