Supporting Staff who Support Students

Eleanor Flynn1, Wendy Hu2, Robyn Woodward-Kron1

2School of Medicine, University of Western Sydney1Melbourne Medical School, University of Melbourne

Acknowledgements: ANZAHPE & ACEN Research Grants

Workshop Overview• Background • Training resources for professional, academic

and clinical staff who support students– Video triggers to foster peer support – A critical incident response flowchart

• A note:– Scenarios based on aggregated real life stories – Discuss what you are comfortable discussing,

but please keep it private

Why is supporting staff important?• Unique stressors1-2 faced by medical & health

professional students• Community expectation to provide academic &

pastoral support to students • Distance from on-campus services and staff training

Student concerns presenting to staff• Scheduling, procedures, paperwork • Study, progress and assessments • Isolation, specific placement issues• Relationships: peers, staff and family • Financial and employment pressures• Mental health and substance abuse • Accidents and deaths: suicide, life-

threatening illnesses

Increasing level of concern

What are the effects of dealing with student concerns on you,

or on your staff? Discussion Activity

5 minutes – Think-Pair-Share

Research findings – Impact on Staff of Supporting Students in Distress

• ‘Emotional labour’ work not acknowledged• Tensions between – Formal roles, and desire to help students – Being approachable, and keeping professional

boundaries– Maintaining privacy, and documenting concerns– Feeling responsible, but ineffectual

• Need for staff support and training

Training & Support RecommendationsPROCESSES

• Orientation, role clarification• Management of workload,

formal recognition • Clearer communication:

when to refer and to whom, what to document

• Peer support: informal debriefings

• Self care, boundary setting

RESOURCES• Skills training e.g. Mental

Health First Aid • Information about local

referral and support services

• Information about policies and procedures

• Critical incident flowchart and checklist

• Training resource with video simulations

When students disclose: How should I respond?

Discussion Activity30 minutes – Video scenarios

A Scenario

A student comes to you in the office with a timetabling request….

Questions to consider:• What happens in the video scenario? • What issues does the scenario raise about

staff roles and responsibilities?• How should staff respond to this scenario?

[Videos]

A Scenario

An administrative officer approaches a supervisor with concerns….

Questions to consider:• What happens in the video scenario? • What issues does the scenario raise about

roles and responsibilities?• What should be done?

[Videos]

Summing up…

When the unexpected happens: Developing a response flowchart

Discussion Activity30 minutes

Types of student concerns• Usual Staff-Student interactions

Student request Staff response (check policy) Referral Documentation Follow-up

• Critical incident – a definition5,6

– Traumatic and serious event– Extreme physical and/or emotional distress – Outside normal range of experience Imbalance between usual staff capacity and resources, and the needs of affected person(s)

What are examples of critical or urgent student concerns?

Discussion Activity5 minutes – Think-Pair-Share

Developing a flowchart

STUDENT CONCERN

Critical, Urgent or Non-Urgent?

What follow-up is needed?

What resources are available?

What to document, and how?

What are the relevant policies?

Who needs to know? When?

When to refer on? To whom?

Summing up…

Where to from here?

Develop a “standard” referral pathway

Circulate information about support services

Staff orientation and training How will you use the workshop resources?

Disseminate an incident response pathway

Further information

Eleanor Flynn e.flynn@unimelb.edu.auWendy Hu w.hu@uws.edu.au

Robyn Woodward-Kron robynwk@unimelb.edu.au