Few periods in recent history have been as challenging for leaders and managers as the last several months. The pandemic forced us to drastically change how we deliver services with little time to plan or support staff through the experience. Unlike other work stressors, COVID-19 transcends the work environment as it threatened our lives and those of our family and friends. Besides the fear of the virus, we saw a fight for racial justice, a financial crisis, and an intense and divisive political election and insurrection. As the pandemic enters its second year, people are tired, traumatized, angry, and afraid.
Leaders and managers have done heroic work to support staff while staff continue to give every ounce of energy they have to those they serve. Our resiliency and passion allowed us to survive during the pandemic and turbulent times. However, the biggest challenge is now on the horizon. Every day brings a new study about the crashing mental health of our communities. This mental health crisis will hit the social services, health care, and education sectors particularly hard as our staff were burning out at rates higher than any other occupations before the pandemic.
The challenge that faces us is clear, how do we help a burned out and traumatized workforce recover? We cannot assume this healing will naturally happen as vaccines help us return to "normal." If not strategically address, our workforce's mental health threatens to lower our outcomes, devastate our organizational culture, and cost us financially in turnover, absenteeism, health care costs, and declining productivity. This training series will help leaders and managers understand the impact of the trauma of the last months, create a plan for recovery, and address the systematic issues that burned people out at alarming rates before the pandemic.
Goals and Objectives
- Understand the Mental Health Crisis happening now in human services
- Effectively position Organizational Support & Self-care to improve performance and wellness.
- Learn the importance and strategies for a recovery plan.
Eligible for 4 hours Certificate of Completion
Matt Bennett is a relentless advocate for trauma-informed care and other interventions that help people and communities heal. His passion manifests in his books Connecting Paradigms, Talking about Trauma & Change, Heart Variability, and Trauma-Sensitive Early Education as well as his Trauma-Informed Lens and Heart Rate Variability Podcasts. Mr. Bennett combines his masters’ degrees in community psychology and executive development/nonprofit management and business administration with his practical experience as a therapist and leader to develop research-based solutions to improve the health of individuals, staff, organizations, and systems.
As a sought-after trainer, Mr. Bennett utilizes a participant-centered approach, which includes interactions and adult learning activities to maximize learning, retention, and application. Mr. Bennett’s presentations are a dynamic dance of innovative research, practical applications, and a passion for the art and science of helping others.
