Team Wellbeing and Development Information - DOT-P

We know that working in healthcare settings with people in need affects all of us in different ways, and it is important for us to keep thinking together about how we can best support each other through these challenging times.  

We have a dedicated staff wellbeing service for all our colleagues at the Royal London Dental Hospital, and associated sites. Given the additional pressures and stresses that come with working through a global health pandemic, we want to ensure that staff know what support is on offer and how to access it. We currently have three staff wellbeing pathways: 

1:1 Staff support: Therapeutic assessment and signposting 

Our psychologists offer 1:1 sessions for any member of staff who is feeling distressed due to an events which have happened at work.  This might include distress related to a clinical work with a patient or to do with pressures associated with current Covid pandemic, or other traumatic experiences in the workplace. In our experience, staff report finding it helpful to have someone to talk to who is both a trained psychologist and who understands the unique pressures of their work. 

It is important to note that this is not a therapy service, and it is not a space to resolve disputes between colleagues or managers. Our aim is to offer a therapeutic space to help staff to process what has happened, and to assess if there is any longer-term support that you may need. We may suggest that you visit your GP to get a referral to a therapy service or it may be that Occupational health or HR are best placed to support you. We can also suggest online resources, self-help tools or apps for your phone. We offer a maximum of four sessions although we find that most people only need one or two. 

Wellbeing groups 

We provide a range of structured wellbeing groups which draw on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy approaches and psychoeducation. These groups are facilitated by the psychology team and may be delivered collaboratively with colleagues across the Dental Hospital, who have received the appropriate training and support from a DOT-Psychologist.  If you would like to become involved in the delivery of these groups, then please speak to a member of the team (dotpsychology@nelft.nhs.uk)  

Team debriefs 

Our team-based work offers staff a space to reflect and ‘check-in’ with others, whilst also providing an opportunity for sharing and support. For example, we consider challenges together, such as the impact of the pandemic on the team as a whole through to the day-to-day pressures of working in healthcare services. These sessions are organised at a convenient time for offered to all team members.