GRIEF WEEK 2013ACKNOWLEDGING THE WORK OF UMHS

STAFF

◦ Between 1000-1100 deaths every year of hospital patients

◦ Countless other patients die at home◦ Colleagues suffer losses of family and friends◦ Colleagues also develop terminal illnesses or can

die suddenly

Grief in the Workplace

Everyone who works here is a caregiver. Staff develop caring and compassionate

attitudes towards patients and families. Staff learn about hope and resiliency of our

patients and their families This is our reward.

What makes death difficult to handle in the workplace

What does that mean to each of us? Professional means this is not my loss but one of many I will

deal with Professional means I get to come back and do this again. Professional means I have to find a way to handle my own

feelings in a respectful and dignified way. I have to work at it Need to develop the right blend of compassion and self-

protection

Professionals often hide their grief but postponed grief needs expression

Familiarity with death does not make it easier to accept.

Professional Behavior

Line can blur between professionalism and allowing oneself to feel the other’s pain and express our own feelings Confidence in one’s own ability to look at death Whether one views death as an enemy The expectations of the “Michigan Difference” are

high. We bump up against our ethics all the time. Feelings of Helplessness

Professional/Personal Grief

Compassion Fatigue is the cost of caring Is related to the compassion we feel and is

unique to caregivers We do this work and sometimes it hurts We can’t always take the time to process

what we are experiencing with our colleagues or friends.

When we experience our own losses it is a compounding factor

Shouldn’t we have immunity-we gave at the office

We are quicker to see the end point We are not sure how to support each other in the

work place

I can’t go in that room anymore. That poor woman is just dying

I wasn’t prepared to have to transport a patient to the viewing room who was all dressed with make up on. That really bothered me.

I don’t like seeing the dead bodies being wheeled off the units. It feels like a failure

Can someone else take the next dying patient? I can’t take one more right now.

Voices of the Staff

I got so close to my patient . She was here for months. It’s hard to believe she’s gone.

I kept trying out new therapies but then had to admit that all I could do was help him have the least worse death

There was so much suffering at the end. It was hard to watch that.

I couldn’t help but remember what my mother went through when she was fighting Alzheimers. I feel for that family

Talk to other people who understand Take time out Give ourselves permission to grieve Create our own rituals to make a transition from

one patient to the next , one loss to the next. Become acquainted with the process of normal

grief Don’t stop caring! Take care of our physical, emotional and

spiritual selves.

What can we do?

From PICU social worker to ODA Learning to be “present” and witness pain Making it better so families do not “get

stuck” here Helping staff cope and being a resource Becoming the transplant center

cummulative grief coordinator

Professional Journey

Acknowledge staff losses across the health system

Focus on activities that renew the “head , heart and spirit”.

Acknowledge the cumulative effect of losing patients, colleagues, family and friends

“We do this work and sometimes it hurts”

Purpose of Grief Week for Staff

Over 1000 deaths per year in the Medical Center

Many more deaths of UM patients in home or hospice settings.

Often no time for staff to mourn losses or acknowledge the emotional impact of losing a patient, colleague or loved one.

Unrecognized effects of cumulative grief can lead to burnout, stress, loss of productivity and low morale.

Background

Unrecognized grievers need to acknowledge cummulative losses

Has not been institutional recognition of these losses (occasional unit-based activities.)

Have not had a memorial service focused on staff.

Background cont’d

Coordinator of the Office of Decedent Affairs teamed up with the Coordinator of the Transplant Center Cummulative Grief committee.

Idea to have a grief week for staff inclusive of all areas and disciplines

Planning members include:◦ Social work Transporter Services◦ Spiritual Care Environmental Services◦ Medicine Child life◦ Nursing Unit hosts◦ interpreter services Gift of Arts◦ Transplant Services Gift of Life◦ Home care services◦ Physician Assistants ◦ Public Information Office◦ Employee Assistance Program

Planning Committee

Committees formed to plan events of grief week.

Each group is multidisciplinary Events supported financially by a variety of

hospital units and outside grants. Off-site units may be able to participate

with the art project, and webstreaming.

Schwartz Rounds: “Creativity and Grief- A Showcase”

Sister Susanne: “Looking for Laughter in the Midst of Loss”

Memorial Service for staff (offered twice) Keynote speaker: Dr. Alan Wolfelt : “Grief in the

Workplace-Companioning Yourself while You Companion patients , families and staff.”

Family Panel: Gratitude and Grief Ongoing: Art Project Ongoing: Grief Wall in UH

Program

Ongoing: Information Table Tips of the day on the internal home page Evening event open to all professional staff

interested in grief and loss. Wolfelt seminar: “Beyond Therapy: the Art

of Companioning the Bereaved” Registration required Evaluation will be conducted after Grief

Week to solicit ideas for improvement for next year.

Please plan on attending as many of the activities as possible and encouraging all of your staff to do the same!

Thank You.