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Dr. Maria Esther Miranda Jarquin pictured at the Puesto Salud Familia y Comunitario San Jose Oriental, shares that itÕs important to grow the flu program especially for chronic conditions. SheÕs been a doctor for 27 years and believes that vaccines have made a big difference in the health of people in Nicaragua. The Partnership for Influenza Vaccine Introduction, a project of The Task Force for Global Health, is working with the Ministry of Health in Nicaragua to provide pregnant women and other high-risk groups with seasonal influenza vaccine. Wed. March 22, 2017 (Photo by Billy Weeks)

Compassion & Resilience Training

Motivated by the unprecedented stressors during the COVID-19 pandemic, FACE co-created various offerings to build resilience, cultivate well-being, and create a compassionate ecosystem for the global public health workforce.

 

The Challenge

 

The unprecedented scale and duration of the COVID-19 response led to unmanageable stress, burnout, unhealthy coping mechanisms, and poor emotional and mental health among public health responders. Chronic job-related stress and burnout lead to impaired individual and team functioning and increased attrition.

 
 

 

Our Approach

 

Psychological safety with colleagues is one of the most important characteristics of high-performing teams. Additionally, deeper connections with colleagues positively affect the level of energy employees contribute to their work. And ultimately, a workforce that is flourishing is better able to support the communities it serves. FACE co-designed offerings to begin to create these conditions in the global public health workforce, during the pandemic response and beyond. 

Training Courses

A Place to Process

IIn 2020, led by the Compassion Institute, FACE co-created A Place to Process with colleagues at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This six-week, online peer-processing group was offered to more than 900 federal and state-level public health practitioners in cohorts of 20-30 individuals. It helped participants:

  • Navigate the experience of burnout

  • Learn skills to support resilience

  • Develop self-care habits

  • Cultivate team psychological safety

 

Compassionate Leadership in Global Health

Led by the Center for Compassionate Leadership, we co-developed and co-facilitated a course on compassionate leadership for more than 600 participants from more than 40 countries. It was designed to deepen global health leaders’ capacity to:

  • Cultivate awareness of self and others

  • Create cultures of safety, connection, and belonging

  • Navigate difficult conversations and skillfully give feedback

  • Build high-performing teams that are accountable and engaged

  • Apply courageous compassion to foster systems change

 

Lessons Learned

 

Participants from the Caring From The Inside Out training shared their key takeaways:

"Having one hour each week to dedicate to self-care and personal growth was more impactful than I could have imagined. It was so refreshing to have candid conversations with fellow employees in a space where we felt safe to be vulnerable."
"This course has probably helped me as much in my personal life as it has in my professional life. I feel like I have been much more present with my family."
"I am less reactive and negative in my communications. I’m also better at taking care of my mental and physical health and being kind to myself when I have shortcomings."

Upon completion of the Caring From The Inside Out training, participants reported:

83%

felt their overall mental & emotional well-being improved

73%

felt less burned out

87%

felt better able to focus on achieving their goals

78%

felt more connected to their sense of purpose

Participants from Compassionate Leadership in Global Health Shared Their Key Takeaways

"This course was an incredibly enriching experience. I especially enjoyed the deep connection we cultivated as a group which created a safe space for us to share our individual experiences and unique perspectives/challenges. It was a transformative eight weeks that left me feeling inspired and ready to lead with compassion, both personally and professionally."
"The number one change that I realized after the training, even before it had ended, was the need for self-care, the need for self-compassion, the need for focusing on myself such that you are always renewed and fulfilled to give out."
"I walked away from the course with skills that are beneficial to my personal and professional life. The participants where from all over the world and brought varied experiences and expertise, which added additional value to the course. Not only did I learn a great deal from the presenters, I gained a wealth of knowledge from the other participants. I received tangible leadership skills that I will be able to incorporate into my department and overall organization."
"This training gave me the personal and professional tools to believe in the possibility of transformational change, and then to dare take the first steps."
"The training on Compassionate Leadership is a great opportunity to do a self-audit, share challenges and opportunities with fellow colleagues in pretty much similar circumstances and start a new journey with lot of optimism."
"The course provided an intentional mid-week break from our normal routines to gather, ground, learn, and cultivate compassion. I would recommend this course for anyone who is interested in learning some of the overarching theories and benefits of compassionate leadership, and who also wants to gain practical tools to implement compassionate practices within their lives and workplaces."
"This is a course for all health system managers and leaders who have passion to change the current status quo of global health leadership."
"The Compassionate Leader program is a training to support you and give you ideas on the whys, what, and how to assist our workplaces to be compassionate, purposeful, and psychologically safe for all employees – to benefit ourselves, our colleagues, our families, our communities. It’s also a great training to connect with others from around the world, to learn together and to share our experiences, insights, and hopes. I recommend this training to anyone seeking to transform their workplace for the greater good of all."

Eighteen months after completion of the training program, participants reported:

Significant improvements to self-compassion, compassion for others, compassion at work, and compassion for broader society

90%

would recommend the program to their colleagues

75%

had seen changes in their organization due to the training, especially when more than one colleague attended

Interested in facilitating a similar training?

Reach out to us at face@taskforce.org to discuss opportunities to co-design and co-facilitate a course on compassion and resilience. 

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