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Abstract
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INTRODUCTION: Employees in the healthcare sector are exposed to critical events, such as violence, which might have a negative impact on their mental health. Support from front-line peer support workers can provide an opportunity to counteract the effects of these critical events. An implementation study therefore examined whether the ability of front-line support workers to support colleagues following critical events can be increased as a result of training.
METHODology: A total of 50 front-line peer support workers received training during a two-day workshop. Ten of the support workers were from an acute psychiatric hospital and 40 were from facilities for people with disabilities. The front-line support workers were surveyed on their confidence in their own ability and on their experiences in providing front-line support at three points in time (prior to, immediately after and two years after the training).
RESULTS: As a result of the training, the support workers' confidence in their own ability to support colleagues showed a lasting increase. At each of the three points in time, this confidence was stronger among the employees from the acute psychiatric hospital than among the employees from the facilities for people with disabilities. The level of confidence was lower for serious events (e.g. suicide) than for more minor events (e.g. verbal abuse). In total, support was provided on 91 occasions during the follow-up period after the training. Almost all the employees at the psychiatric hospital and half of the employees at the facilities for people with disabilities provided support in the two years following the training.
CONCLUSION: The peer support was well accepted at the facilities. The participants in the training stated that their confidence in their own ability to provide support after critical events increased. Front-line peer support is therefore likely to be an opportunity to reduce the negative effects of such events on employees in the healthcare sector.
Language: de |