Debrief, exit interviews, follow-up and peer support networks for humanitarian staff – making the business case to management

When humanitarian aid workers exit an organization to their next assignment, a little extra and relatively inexpensive attention from the organization can make a big difference. The difference for the departing staff member or consultant can be between a debilitating stress reaction or a smooth transition. The difference for the organization can be between a loyal recruiting pool, and reduced legal risk of liability cases on one hand and a faltering reputation on the other.

Management therefore has a stake in making the time, even in a busy and overstretched resource environment, for conducting psychological debriefs for staff returning from the field, giving exit interviews that glean lessons learned, and following up at six weeks and six months to establish that staff have found adequate resources for coping with any adverse reactions to the stress they experienced in the field.

Another simple and cheap way to provide support to exiting staff is the provision of peer networks in the form of listserves or informal virtual introductions among alumni of the organization. Events, newsletters, and other community maintenance services can supplement to good effect, but the basic facilitation of connection can provide ample opportunity for forming supportive ties with others who can provide empathy, due to their own similar experiences, as well as outlets for sharing ideas, mentoring, and stimulating positive social change.

Social support, as provided by management in the form of exit protocols and by peers through social networking, is important for several reasons. Recent studies show that “traditional social networks play a surprisingly powerful and underrecognized role in influencing how people behave.”1 A World Vision study2 showed that “individual resilience factors only accounted for some 7% of the variance between those who develop stress and trauma reactions and those who do not. … the degree and type of social support an individual is experiencing… accounted for up to 30% variance.”

Sharing these facts may convince, but in order to win real commitment by management for actual implementation, decision-makers will understand the need for providing exit services when they have experienced the bite of a stress reaction for themselves. Field visits, stories, and simulations can be useful in communicating, at a visceral level, the impact of stress in absence of a supportive environment.

1. Social Networks' Sway May Be Underestimated By Rob Stein, Washington Post Staff Writer
2. Conference session on Stress and Trauma Effects on National Staff: How Best to Use the Resources (Tuesday, 16th November, 2004; 3.50pm) by Janelle Richards, Human Resources Manager, World Vision, Australia, Janelle.richards@worldvision.com.au, Supplementary analysis was conducted by staff at the Headington Program at Fuller Seminary.
The key findings were:
• The relationship between a manager and their staff is critical for the mental health of all groups whether exposed to trauma or not.
• Those with compromised Social Support are 10 times as likely to be experiencing trauma following an event during service with WV as those with non compromised Social Support.
• Staff exposed to trauma who have compromised social support are 2.6 times as likely to experience moderate to severe anxiety as staff exposed to trauma who have good levels of social support.
• Social support within the organisation is a good a predictor of health with the most potent social support being the team leader.
• There is a threefold higher risk of experiencing anxiety if staff social support is compromised than if it is not.