At last week’s Employee Forum, we began the conversation about how we can acknowledge our collective and individual experiences of the pandemic, celebrate the growth and learning that arises from adversity, and use it to help us collectively move forward.
We want to create a safe space for our teams to talk about and explore their personal and professional journey through the pandemic – if they choose to.
This conversation may occur within teams or, if people prefer, with others from outside their team, for example, via the Schwartz Rounds, which will focus on this topic over the coming months.
We are encouraging managers to host pandemic conversations with their teams – where it is not personally distressing for you to do so.
We have developed a straightforward framework to help you guide meaningful discussions. This framework has four steps, each designed to guide the conversation towards a deeper understanding of our experiences during the pandemic. You can find a copy of this framework, and discussion notes, here.
Please be mindful and sensitive that some of your team may not wish to contribute, and some may not need to. This activity is optional.
Other options and support
It’s worth restating that our responses to the pandemic are as individual as we are. If people within your team would like to engage in discussion through a different format, there are other options available:
Schwartz Rounds
Schwartz Rounds are multidisciplinary forums where employees from all areas can gather to discuss the psycho-social aspects of caring for our patients and each other. Sessions are planned throughout the remainder of the year. Keep an eye on our Event listings and iNews on the intranet as more information becomes available.
Be Well facilitated sessions
The Be Well Program is a free and confidential service to support employee and team wellbeing, facilitated by Monash Health’s psychologists. Leaders are welcome to get in touch with the Be Well team for guidance and support in leading these team conversations.
Other support
Visit our Health and wellbeing site for more information on programs, resources and support services to help support your team’s health and wellbeing.
Our Pandemic Anthology
We will also create a digital anthology that will capture this remarkable time through a collection of documented experiences shared by our people. This has grown from an idea developed by our Nursing and Midwifery leadership, which we will now extend across the entire organisation.
Submissions can be through any medium relevant to the individual or group, and may include poetry, short stories, artwork, songs, music, photographs, excerpts, quotes, and artefacts. Together, it will capture the lived experiences of Monash Health healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Anyone can contribute; the Anthology will give us another way to reflect and use the experience to move us forward.
You can read more about the Anthology and find the submission form here.
Thank you for all you have done and continue to do as we continue this conversation on acknowledging the past and embracing the future.
Martin