Creating a Safe Space: Psychological Safety of Healthcare Workers (Peer-to-Peer Support and Other Support Models)
Cumulative stress, compassion fatigue and trauma due to experiences with patient safety incidents impact the mental wellness of healthcare providers. These factors contribute to preventable patient safety incidents, mental health issues and attrition, which compromise patient safety. Peer support programs (and other support models) help healthcare workers recover, restore and build resilience after patient safety incidents. They also improve the system and help make care safer.
The Creating a Safe Space: Addressing the Psychological Safety of Healthcare Workers guideline is intended to assist healthcare organizations to support their healthcare workers by creating peer support programs (PSPs) or other models of support.
The guideline provides a comprehensive overview of what healthcare worker support models are available in Canada and internationally. It outlines best practice, and tools and resources that policy-makers, accreditation bodies, regulators and healthcare leaders can use to assess the support needs of healthcare workers.
