Psych Health and Safety Podcast

In this episode, we chat with Dr Tristan Casey to understand the concept of workplace injury and illness stigma. Tristan takes us through the findings of a research project exploring the causes and impact of injury and illness stigma in the workplace. We discuss the drivers behind stigma and the consequences of stigma for the injured or ill worker. Tristan shares examples of protective workplace f...

In this episode we chat with Antony Malmo from Allos Australia about the role of the psych health and safety professional now and into the future. Antony explains the concept of the wicked problem and why he believes psych health and safety is an example of this, and we discuss the confounding role of individual preferences in psychosocial risk. Antony shares his thoughts on what psych health and...

In this episode we chat with Stephen Davison, Chief Customer Officer at FlourishDx. Steve discusses the role of the company board and executives in relation to psychological health and safety, we talk about the impact of increasing interest in ESG reporting on adoption of psychological health and safety measures in organisations, and Steve shares some useful tips for listeners tasked with preparin...

In the second of our EXPERT SERIES episodes, Jason and Alicia discuss the rising popularity of Mental Health First Aid and other Peer Support programs, and the challenges associated with implementing these programs well. This conversation focuses on issues of peer supporter visibility, utilisation rates, and the vicarious trauma risk that peer supporters are often exposed to. We also provide liste...

In this episode we chat with Jo Newman, wellbeing practitioner and winner of the 2022 'Breaking the Silence' award in the Great British Workplace Wellbeing Awards. In this practical case study episode, Jo takes us step-by-step through her wellbeing initiative. From generating leadership commitment, to engaging the workforce, to understanding workforce needs, to selecting the right interventions, t...

In this episode we chat with Daniel Gaebler, author of 'The Centred Tradie' and owner of Laser Plumbing Caringbah. We chat about Dan's book, why he wrote it, and how it's been received so far. Dan shares his experiences as a small business owner in recognising when employees might be struggling. He gives examples of the types of accommodations a small business can provide to employees when needed,...

In this episode we chat with Candice Schaefer, Head of Employee Health & Performance at Spring Health. We start out with a chat about the current state of workplace mental health in the US, and the impact of the pandemic on employer attitudes to worker mental health. Candice talks about the tech industry's approach to workplace mental health, the framing of mental health supports as an employee be...

In this episode we chat with Dr Chris Doyle, Group Head of Environment, Health & Safety at Lendlease. Chris shares his experiences in creating a values-driven transformational change in a global organisation and discusses the realities of the intersection between safety and ethics in operations. He describes Lendlease's approach to project scoping in considering worker lived experience, and shares...

In the first episode of Psych Health and Safety USA, we’ll be talking to a group of global psych health and safety podcast hosts about the world of work and what it looks like in their respective countries. We’ll discuss their experiences and their perspective on how the U. S. compares and what can be done to bridge any gaps. We’ll talk about the various standards and policies that have been imple...

In this episode we welcome back Jennifer Low from the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry to chat about the newly published Psychosocial Amendments to the Model WHS Regulations. As an employer representative on the Safe Work Australia National Committee, Jen shares some insights into the discussions and decision-making leading up to the published Amendments. She gives us a run-down of new...

In this special episode we invite back six of our past guests to help us celebrate our 100th episode. Dr Rebecca Michalak provides an update on the business response to sexual harassment in Australia, Wade Needham discusses how psych health and safety contributes to corporate sustainability goals, Peter Kelly shares some insights on the future of psych health and safety regulation in the UK, Hayle...

In this episode we chat with Brian Long, General Manager Health Safety and Environment at Mirvac. Brain shares his observations of the current and emerging state of psychological health and safety in the construction industry, and the main differences between construction and retail when it comes to workplace mental health. We discuss the idea of adaptive capacity at an individual level and its re...

In this episode we chat with Catherine Dunlop, Partner at Maddocks lawyers. Catherine takes us through the recent High Court Kozarov decision upholding a workers compensation claim for vicarious trauma. She discusses the implications of the decision for employers, and shares her thoughts on the upcoming psychological health and safety regulations.

In this episode we chat with Liam O’Brien, Australian Council of Trade Unions Assistant Secretary. Liam shares some background on the past efforts of workers and unions to drive reform for psychological health and safety. We discuss the improvements in psych health and safety already achieved in workplaces, along with the opportunities for improvement that remain. Liam shares his views on current...

In this episode we chat with Rob Briner, Professor of Organizational Psychology at Queen Mary University of London. He shares his views on the growth of employee wellbeing and workplace mental health initiatives, and explains why organisations should focus on problem identification and diagnosis before seeking solutions. We discuss what evidence-based practice looks like when conducting organisati...

In this episode we chat with Tom Holliss, Chief People Officer at Zappi. He shares Zappi’s ‘agile-HR’ approach to People policies grounded in compassion and trust, provides examples of how these approaches can work at scale and across industries, and discusses some of the challenges or barriers organisations might face when attempting to shift to a more compassionate culture.

In this episode we chat with Siusan MacKenzie, CEO of the Emergency Services Foundation in Melbourne, Australia. We discuss the current state of mental health within emergency services personnel. She describes the different programs being run by the Foundation to prevent psychological injury in emergency services through a focus on leadership, along with programs to assist frontline personnel in r...

In this episode we chat with Dr Jacqui Wilmshurst, Chartered Applied Psychologist. Jacqui shares her experiences in working with neurodivergent clients and her own experiences as a neurodivergent woman. We discuss the benefits of a neurodiverse workforce, and Jacqui shares some tips on how employers can improve the experience of work for neurodivergent employees.

In this episode we chat with Dr Simon Albrecht, Senior Lecturer and Coordinator of the Masters of Organisational Psychology program at Deakin University. We talk about the elements of good quality applied research and how it supports the scientist-practitioner approach, then get into more detail about employee engagement, its organisational drivers, and how it relates to wellbeing.

In this episode we chat with Dr Helen Kelly about burnout in teachers and school principals. Helen shares some of the statistics about burnout and attrition rates in teachers, the commonalities and differences in psychosocial hazard exposure between teachers and principals, and the reasons behind the ever-increasing workload for both groups. She offers suggestions for how schools can better manage...

In this episode we chat with Dr Keaton Fletcher. As the 2022 SIOP Trend Champion for Employee Mental Health, Keaton explains the Top 10 Work Trends initiative, then shares the research he has been doing as Trend Champion to produce his first quarterly round-up for 2022. He gives us an overview of the main themes that have emerged this quarter, along with his observations about what is missing from...

In this episode we chat with Dr David Anthony, Co-Founder and CEO of Mantle Health. We chat about how his experiences working in male-dominated industries led him to co-found Mantle with a focus on men’s mental health. Dave shares his views on the current state of mental health provision for men, particularly within EAPs. We discuss whether the current approach to EAP use in organisations is an ef...

In this episode we chat with Mark Layson, NSW Ambulance Chaplain and Doctoral Candidate at Charles Sturt University. Mark defines moral injury for us, and explains how it relates to trauma response and how it is different from PTSD. We discuss the non-trauma related psychosocial issues that can contribute to moral injury in first responders, and Mark speaks to the application of systems theory in...