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.Whatever the name, this groupis charged with establishing the program s direction andinsuring that the fundamental goals, centered on thereduction of stress and enhancement of the quality of worklife, are accomplished.The members of the team includesenior members of the leadership team and the union,along with individuals in the organization who have anidentified association with workplace wellness, and repre-sentatives from the Peer Support Network.Peer Support NetworkPeer Support is defined as the verbal and nonverbalcommunication between colleagues which" Creates opportunities for expression of feelings" Provides support, affirmation and reassuranceT h e Ar t o f Wo r k i n g i n Y o u r Gr e e n Z o n e 182 " Offers new directions or perspectives onproblems, and" Enhances an individual s sense ofself-control.(Ref.1)The Peer Support Network is a network of employeesdesigned to build or strengthen caring relationships in theworkplace so that employees may provide support to eachother in stressful work situations.In essence, this type ofsupport system enables staff to access the caring benefitsof workgroups, mentioned previously in Chapter 7 by Hildawho referred to this type of support in the workplace as a family-like atmosphere. The network is strengthenedthrough work-related activities and social events outside ofthe workplace.In each work unit or department, a Peer SupportLeader who is a volunteer with a special interest in work-place wellness, is selected to represent that unit.They arethe first employees to attend educational programs offeredby the Wellness Team and are members of this team.Although their responsibilities are not extensive, they playa crucial role in ensuring the success of the program,including:" communicating information about the wellnessprogram to co-workers in their department /unit" providing support to other employees in mildlystressful situations, or in more challenging situ-ations referring them to people with moreexpertiseDr.K.Sohai l and Bette Davi s RN MN 183 " planning with co-workers how they willnetwork/socialize regularly as a group andcollaboratively coordinating these gatherings" providing feedback to the leadership group,staff and the Wellness Team on issues ofmorale and quality of worklife.I have used Peer Support as the backbone of the wellnessprograms I have developed because of the proven benefitsassociated with support.The healing power of supportiverelationships has been the subject of numerous publica-tions and identified by at least one author, as the mostpowerful intervention against diseases, including those thatare stress related.Referring to the benefits of support Dr.Dean Ornish comments, I am not aware of any factor inmedicine not diet, not smoking, not exercise, not stress,not genetics, not drugs, not surgery that has a greaterimpact on our quality of life, incidence of illness andpremature deaths from all causes. (Ref 2) He goes on toemphasize that, If a new drug had the same impact, virtu-ally every doctor in the country would be prescribing it fortheir patients in fact, it would be considered malpracticenot to recommended it. Social support has also beenranked the highest on a list of factors that increase ourresistance to stress.(Ref.3) Additionally, it is seen as a wayof preventing illness that is associated with stressful expe-riences. (Ref.4)While these authors look at the bigger picture, somestudies have examined the value of peer support and organ-ized peer support networks, specifically in the workplace.These studies have shown that peer support noticeablybuffers workplace stress and is an important coping strat-T h e Ar t o f Wo r k i n g i n Y o u r Gr e e n Z o n e 184 egy in times of work-related stress, especially in high stressconditions.While not all employee groups have been stud-ied, peer support is considered one of the most effective andmost frequently used strategies to benefit employees inareas such as health care.When this type of support isorganized into a formal Peer Support Network it has beenshown to positively affect workplace stress by increasingjob morale, group cohesiveness and problem solving abili-ties, while decreasing staff complaints.(Ref.5, 6, 7, 8,)According to research, supportive relationships areable to stand alone as a buffer against workplace stress
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