Creating a Culture of Self-Care in Your Program

1. Emerging Leaders 2020 Cohort

2. Leadership How-to Guide
This guide will provide outlines on how to increase self-care
practices and improve resiliency within your program by
looking at:
• WHY: Information on why self-care is important.
• HOW: Ways to create a culture/environment that promotes
self-care and resilience.
• WHAT: Ideas, resources, and tips for self-care practices
both at work and at home to give to staff.

3. How
• Educate: Provide all staff (including non-clinical staff)
information on importance of self-care, how vicarious trauma
works, and ways they can practice self-care at work and at
home. Include resources, links, and information about benefits.
Utilize posters, self-care tips on T-net, etc.
• Discuss: Make time in meetings, supervision, and crisis debriefs
for employees to share ideas for self-care and ways to build
resilience.
• Promote: Promote regularly. Self-care culture starts with you!

4. Why
• Research from the CDC suggests that stress plays an
important role in several types of chronic health
problems.
• Practicing self-care combats workplace stress, reduces
burnout, increases resiliency, and promotes a healthy
workplace environment.

5. Self-care and staff meetings
• Reserving time every staff meeting for self-care. This time
can be used to share a new self-care tip or facilitate a
discussion amongst staff about ways they are practicing
self-care, self-care goals, ways to increase resilience.
• Participate in self-care action ideas.

6. Self-care and Crisis Debriefing
• Including all job types/ staff, not just clinical staff.
• Providing brief psychoeducation after-especially for staff
that is not accustomed to clinical interventions.
• Asking about specific/concrete ways self-care will be used
afterwards.

7. Self-care and Supervision
• Talk about self-care regularly with staff (if possible, check in each
supervision session).
• Bring up topic with your staff when you see that they need it. Don’t be
afraid to approach them first.
• Encourage clinical staff to teach others about self-care.
• Disclose appropriately & model self-care. If you create a culture of self-
care, employees will follow.
• Provide praise when employees take time off for self-care
appropriately/ reinforce good self-care behavior. Set goals with those
who struggle.

8. Preventing Burnout
• Building Resiliency
• Paid Time Off
• Mental Health Days-
promoting
• Getting good amount of sleep
• Learning with your colleagues
or group exercise moments
• Recognizing signs early
• Provide regular Education
• Comfortable break area
• Creating even work-flow &
shared responsibilities
amongst team

9. Environment Check
Increase awareness of how the environment and work culture promotes or detracts from
self-care. Here are some things to look at:
• Do staff have easy access to needs such as: cold water, bathrooms, fridge for
snacks/food, etc. (Come up with ideas for increasing access, for example in ACT
programs provide all staff with reusable water bottles and create a list of known places
that are clean and safe to stop and use restroom).
• What is the culture around being able to leave and take care of yourself if you become
triggered / need a break?
• During meetings, are fidgets provided? Are we catering to different learning styles?
• Do staff have access to break areas that provide low stimulus?
• Be aware of clutter and organization in office spaces. Do staff have what they need to
keep their work-space organized? i.e. folders, place to put things… other ideas.

10. Ways to Present to your Staff
• Rituals/ celebration ideas
for increasing Resilience
• Self-care tips from T-net
• How-to Guides
• Poster in Doc Shop
Click Here to Access the Tools!