Mental Health & MH First Aid - Protecting the Psychological Health and Safety of Volunteers

Source: My notes from mental health training session

Volunteers come from all walks of life. This means a percentage of them will have lived experience with addiction, trauma or mental illness. Others will be struggling with personal, financial or health issues.

Join MHCC and Mindful Employer Canada to explore strategies that can be used to improve the psychological health and safety of your organizations volunteers.

Protecting the Psychological Health and Safety of Volunteers was developed through the contributions and feedback of 27 not-for-profit organizations participating in Mindful Employer Canada’s “Building capacity to promote and protect Psychological Health and Safety in the not-for-profit sector” case study. This two-year case study was made possible by the Ministry of Labour’s Occupational Health and Safety Prevention and Innovation Program.

Join us to learn more about the strategies and resource sin the toolkit to support volunteers within your organization.

Speakers

• Sarah Jenner, Executive Director, Mindful Employer Canada
• Mary Ann Baynton, Program Director, Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace

Introduction

• Target audience: volunteer coordination
• See toolkit package for direction

Advice

• Many organizations already have supports for employees. Supports, policies, resources can be adapted to volunteers like anti-harassment, orientation
• Volunteer coordinator must directly connect with each volunteer, 1 on 1
  • Could be email, survey - what frustrates you? Any mistakes that need fixing
  • To detect changes in volunteers, their feelings
• Mindful employee:
  • 5 minute journal of 3 things that are great to assert self efficacy
• Mental Health Resources:
  • Think low/no cost - assemble resources and give it to volunteers or have them assemble during orientation
• How to engage volunteers/employees struggling/performance?
  • Approach with curiosity, factual
  • Focus on volunteer responsibilities, not advice.
  • Value of the 1 on 1 to assess situation. Have a conversation and questions.
• Legal liabilities?
  • Do the same as for employees
• Adapt tools to your audience (e.g. age sensitive communications)

1-on-1 Guidance

Communicate to volunteer in a way natural to them.

Please provide thoughtful answers to each of the following statements:

• My challenges right now are… (everything that may be frustrating, overwhelming, annoying or concerning you)
• The errors I have made this week are (and I need help to correct them or I corrected them this way)…
• Specific people I have delighted in my role as a volunteer include… (who and what did you do) - mindful feedback
• I am contributing to positive workplace mental health in this way…
• My fellow volunteers or employees have been helpful to me in this way…
• I was most energized when doing this volunteer work… - check the appropriate position for the volunteer
• Any other comments or contributions…

Resources

Learn more about ‘Being a Mindful Employee” at Online training in workplace psychological health and safety - Mental Health Commission of Canada