This study forms Phase 2 of the Supporting the Mental Health and Wellbeing of Healthcare Workers and Their Families project.
The cumulative stress and pressure on hospital healthcare workers are now resulting in heightened job-related stress, increased intention to leave the industry, and subsequent issues with workforce shortages. Despite this, as many as 50% of healthcare workers who may benefit from interventions do not engage in the available supports. This underscores the importance of developing user-informed approaches to maximise utility of interventions and minimize long-term consequences.
To help address these issues, our team of mental health researchers at Deakin University along with partners will lead this phase to co-design an intervention for hospital-based healthcare workers and their families. The primary goal of this project is to transform our understanding of what hospital-based healthcare workers and their families need, into an accessible and feasible intervention.
This phase will adopt a co-design approach, with key research activities including:
- Stakeholder engagement: Hospital based healthcare workers and their partners/co-parents and children.
- Sharing and feedback activities: ‘town hall’ meetings, discussions over moderated WhatsApp groups, and focus groups.
Ultimately, stakeholders will shape the intervention through continuous feedback throughout this phase and into Phase 3.