SuperFriend ramps up mental health training
National workplace mental wellbeing organisation SuperFriend has developed a set of virtual training solutions to help workforces during the COVID-19 pandemic, after receiving a spike of queries from super funds and insurers about supporting their employees.
SuperFriend had updated its most popular training courses and created new content to help equip workers to deal with issues being faced in the current climate.
The range of courses included psychological first aid for COVID-19, contact centre staff training, workplace mental health fundamentals, workplace mental health for people leaders, managing challenging interactions, and person-centred claims management training.
Virtual training would conducted via Zoom or Microsoft Teams which were designed to be interactive and inclusive.
Margo Lydon, SuperFriend chief executive, said the way people were working had shifted without notice to adjust.
“The pandemic has impacted the mental health and wellbeing of the vast majority of Australian workers, either from losing their jobs or being asked to work from home or in different ways,” Lydon said.
“With so much rapid change for most people and businesses, we felt it was paramount to address the new demands on the industry.”
Lydon said during times of massive change and uncertainty, frontline staff routinely interacted with people who were frustrated, upset, angry and aggressive.
“This can be even more difficult to manage when working remotely, whether by phone or online,” Lydon said.
“If not managed empathetically and effectively, customers experiencing distress or anger can escalate quickly.
“We aim to help frontline staff recognise their own triggers and how to de-escalate or terminate interactions to protect themselves from unacceptable violence or aggression.”
AUTHOR
Chris Dastoor
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