You finish a stressful call and are on to the next one. There may be no time to decompress from what just occurred. Paramedics, fire departments, dispatch, healthcare and many teams experience this type of environment.
Stress does not disappear after your shift ends. Providing operational stress management training allows workers to be aware of their stress, address their stress and know there are resources available if things get out of hand. Training can also help supervisors have discussions about stress that may not involve talking about a traumatic event each time.
Key Takeaways:
- How is Operational Stress Different?
- What Should I Be Looking For In a Training Course
- Applying What You Learn on the Job
- Supervisors Play A Key Role
- Creating a Workplace That Supports Wellbeing
How is Operational Stress Different?
Working hard can leave you tired at the end of your shift. Operational stress typically involves working for the safety of others, traumatic events, change and having to make decisions quickly and sometimes without enough information.
Some stress you may feel right away. When a call comes in your body may tense up and you and your team will act on that call. You may also experience stress from lack of sleep, dealing with difficult people, exposure to traumatic events or inability to let work stay at work.
Everyone experiences stress differently. One person may become angry, while another shuts down or may feel tired all of the time. It doesn’t mean they have a mental health disorder, but they may need some support.
Studies show that people who experience operational stress are at a higher risk for developing mental illness. The Public Health Agency of Canada released a report in 2025. In this report they stated that during the pandemic, 11% of front-line workers reported signs and symptoms of PTSD versus 7% of non-front line workers in Canada. While these numbers are from surveys, it does show the effects operational stress can have on your health.
What Should I Be Looking For In a Training Course
It is important to not just teach workers to stay calm when under stress. There should be information that outlines the effects of stress on your mind, body, behaviours and relationships with others. After explaining these effects, teach people what they can do to deal with their stress.
Perhaps after experiencing multiple stressful shifts, a worker learns to recognize when they are thinking overly negative thoughts. Or learn a technique that they can perform when they start to feel stressed. These will not stop you from being stressed, but will allow you to be aware and act on those feelings.
They will all cover different things. A BOS program is offered online and can be completed at your leisure. They will cover topics such as how your body reacts to stress, thoughts, feelings and communication with others.
There are many topics that can be taught to your team, here are some:
- Recognizing when your body may be under stress, this could include not sleeping, becoming angry, unable to concentrate or withdrawing from people you normally talk to.
- Learning how your body reacts to stress and what you can do to reduce your stress response.
- Identify your thoughts and emotions, and use techniques that can help you manage those thoughts and emotions.
- Communicate with others about your stress before it becomes an argument.
- Understand when you need to seek further help. Mental health courses are great to provide you with knowledge, however if you are experiencing extreme stress or think you may have a mental health disorder, seek help from a professional.
Applying What You Learn on the Job
After completing a training course you may feel informed and ready to handle any situation that may occur. Life will throw you curve balls, so it is good to know that you have techniques to help you cope with your stress.
Learn how to use these techniques while on your shift. If you are a dispatcher, take a moment to reset yourself in between calls if your call volume allows. If you are a nurse, maybe you can notice your stress before speaking to a patient that you know will be a challenging encounter. If you are supervising, learn to ask your team how they are doing after a traumatic incident, but understand that they may not want to speak about what happened in detail.
Remember, you do not want your team to feel like they will be reprimanded if they can’t implement these techniques. If your team is constantly short staffed, working overtime and has no downtime, these techniques will not fix all of your problems.
Here are some ideas that your team can start implementing:
- Ask how busy your shift is going to be and if there are any issues that may occur that day.
- Have a plan in place that allows your team to relieve each other when they are overwhelmed.
- Allow your team to regroup after they experience something they didn’t enjoy, it doesn’t have to involve sharing details with everyone.
- Provide your team with resources that can help them if they are struggling with stress or mental health.
Keep in mind that everyone’s job is different, so allow them to take these techniques that apply to them and not force them to talk about what they may have witnessed or experienced.
Supervisors Play A Key Role
Your supervisors can determine if your workers feel comfortable talking about stress at work. They should not expect you to talk to them about traumatic events, but if your workers are trained to speak about their stress, your supervisors need to be able to address that as well.
They should know what to do if you are struggling at work, how to react to someone that may be showing signs of stress, or have changed their behaviour at work. If a supervisor tells their workers that they need to toughen up, your team will not feel as though they can open up to their supervisor about what they are struggling with at work.
Allow your supervisors to ask if you are ok, but if they continue to press on what you experienced, it may create a negative atmosphere in your workplace. Make sure your workplace is safe and that your employees have the ability to let their guard down from time to time.
Ensure that your work hours, expectations and schedule allow your employees to unwind from work.
If there is an incident at work that may put your team at risk, your organization should have steps in place to address that incident. Don’t rely on just one mental health course to fix the issue.
Creating a Workplace That Supports Wellbeing
When providing your team with tools to help them manage their stress, ensure that you are also allowing them the opportunity to practice those skills at work. Provide them with the knowledge to manage their stress and create a positive work environment.