ABSTRACT
Background: Healthcare workers experience burnout, psychological distress and suicide at higher rates than the general population. The stressors inherent to these professions have been magnified during the COVID-19 pandemic. In response, in early 2020, a group of doctors, nurses and allied health practitioners developed Handn- Hand Peer Support Inc. (Helping Australian and New Zealand Nurses and Doctors). Objectives: This programme provides group or one-toone peer support to colleagues in a pre-clinical setting and aims to reduce the rates of distress and improve the wellbeing of its participants. In addition, Hand-n-Hand aims to provide effective peer support training to facilitators to ensure healthcare workers are appropriately supported. Methods: Data have been collected using quantitative and qualitative means since Hand-n-Hand's inception to monitor the uptake of peer support over time and impact on healthcare worker well-being. Social media and website traffic statistics have been monitored and compared to national lockdowns, COVID-19 outbreaks and referrals to Hand-n-Hand. Baseline confidential data has also been collected from each participant and facilitator who signs up for peer support. Finally, a mixed-methods survey has been provided to all participants for quality assessment purposes in addition to targeted interviews with volunteer group facilitators. Findings: There has been consistent uptake of Hand-n- Hand's peer support programme across various platforms. Hand-n-Hand has a strong social media presence and the Facebook peer support group continues to grow. More than 200 healthcare workers have referred themselves for small group or one-to-one peer support since March 2020. More than 90 healthcare workers have taken part in peer support training delivered by the team at Handn- Hand. Participants and group facilitators alike have found involvement with Hand-n-Hand beneficial for their well-being and personally rewarding. Based on the initial feedback, Hand-n-Hand will be expanding to incorporate medical schools in the peer support process from 2022, beginning with James Cook University and aim to reach colleagues in more isolated areas of practice such as rural and remote Australia. Conclusion: Hand-n-Hand began as a simple idea but has evolved into a bi-national early intervention pre-clinical support service for healthcare workers. Requests for peer support continue to increase and long-term funding solutions are imperative to ensure Hand-n-Hand can scale up its operations to meet the demand of the population.
ABSTRACT
Background: Transition to Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) Fellowship can be a challenging time for trainees who are approaching Fellowship who face demands of completing training requirements while finding a first consultant job. Psychiatrists in the early stages of their career are finding their style as a consultant, developing new skills in leadership and management, as well as engaging in ongoing professional development while maintaining self-care and work-life balance. Objectives: To describe the challenges of transitioning to Fellowship and how to maintain well-being and connection by accessing support from peers and College networks and programmes. Methods: The presenters will describe their experiences and the work of the Trainee Representative Committee, Section of Early Career Psychiatrists and Wellbeing Subcommittee. We will also present data about service usage of the Hand-n-Hand peer support network for these groups. Findings: The transition to Fellowship can bring up additional challenges for psychiatrists in addition to those highlighted in the 2020 RANZCP Member Wellbeing Survey such as workload, interpersonal stress and exhaustion that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: There is need to understand and respond to the unique needs of trainees and psychiatrists in this critical phase of their careers, which is highlighted in both the personal stories of the presenters and the supports that are available and are in development.
ABSTRACT
Background: Healthcare workers experience burnout, psychological distress and suicide at higher rates than the general population. The stressors inherent to these professions have been magnified during the COVID-19 pandemic. In response, a group of doctors, nurses and allied health practitioners developed Hand-n-Hand Peer Support Inc. (Helping Australian and New Zealand Nurses and Doctors) in the early months of 2020. Objectives: To provide peer support to colleagues in a pre-clinical setting and aims to reduce the rates of distress and improve the well-being of its participants. In addition, Hand-n-Hand aims to provide effective peer support training to facilitators to ensure healthcare workers are appropriately supported. Methods: Hand-n-Hand was initially piloted on social media before being converted to a peer support model that connects facilitators with peers who had requested support, either in small groups or individually. Facilitators providing peer support may undertake training to become an accredited peer supporter through Hand-n-Hand. Findings: Uptake of peer support among healthcare workers has been consistent since Hand-n-Hand was piloted in March 2020. The initial social media launch gained more than 400 participants in the first 24 hours and Hand-n-Hand has continued to receive a steady influx of healthcare workers requesting peer support. Peer support was initially provided to healthcare workers in Australia and New Zealand. More recently, Hand-n-Hand has expanded to provide peer support training to healthcare workers in developing countries with a large COVID-19 burden. There are minimal sources of help for healthcare workers in these areas and the provision of peer-to-peer support is a cost-effective way to fill this gap. Feedback for Hand-n-Hand's work has been overwhelmingly positive, and there is large potential in the peer support space. Conclusion: There is a clear need and demand for peer support among healthcare workers both in response to COVID-19 and as a long-term well-being tool. Future projects include partnerships with universities in Australia and other countries to implement peer support early in training. This could help effect cultural change and reduce the stigma of help seeking in health professionals.
ABSTRACT
Background: Hand-n-Hand Peer Support Inc. was established in 2020 to provide healthcare workers with access to pre-clinical support in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since inception, Hand-n-Hand has expanded to encompass healthcare workers from across Australia and New Zealand. Peer support has been a valuable tool to improve the well-being of healthcare workers and reduce burnout and compassion fatigue. Objectives: To determine the impact of peer support during this transition period. The transition to consultancy can be stressful as doctors progress from supervised practice to independent work. Methods: Peer support for senior registrars and early career consultants was advertised across various social media platforms and groups were created accordingly. Findings: Peer support was actively sought by doctors in this career phase. Larger peer support groups were established and led by doctors at the same level of practice. Several focused interviews were completed with participants to obtain feedback. Participants found being in groups with colleagues at the same career phase to be more important than being with colleagues from the same speciality. Conclusion: Peer support can provide an alternative to supervision for doctors transitioning from senior registrar to early career consultant and provides members with a safe environment to discuss the associated challenges.