Self-Compassion for Healthcare Communities
Health professionals often wonder if there are skills, techniques or abilities that can help them sustain compassionate care for their patients. They also search for ways to be present for others while also protecting themselves in the face of staff shortages, heavy workloads, time pressure and fatigue.
​There now exists a customized training, designed for health-care workers, that meets their specific needs. Recent research has shown that self-compassion skills can be especially beneficial for health professionals. In fact, these skills are linked to wellness and lower levels of anxiety, depression and stress.
The Self-Compassion Training for Healthcare Communities (SCHC) is a 6-hour adaptation of the MSC training by Kristin Neff of The University of Texas at Austin and Christopher Germer of Harvard Medical School. It aims to improve well-being and emotional resilience in healthcare professionals by teaching them self-compassion skills to deal with difficult situations in the workplace and at home.
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The SCHC training was designed to be accessible to all: everyone can learn how to overcome the challenges they face at work through hands-on coaching and techniques integrated into daily routines.
Program objectives
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Identify the key components of self-compassion and mindfulness and learn how you can integrate them into your professional practice.
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Learn the difference between empathy and compassion and use strategies to prevent professional burnout.
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Identify and practice techniques that promote self-compassion at work and in everyday life.
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Practice at least one skill from each session to care for yourself while performing your caregiver duties.
A proven approach
A study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology (Neff, Knox, Long, Gregory, 2020) revealed that the SCHC program significantly:
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Decreased symptoms of stress, depression, secondary traumatic stress and burnout
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Increased self-compassion, mindfulness, compassion for others and job satisfaction
Another benefit of the SCHC training is being able to practice self-compassion on the spot while at work with patients and colleagues.
Useful information
The program consists of 6 weekly one-hour sessions, either by videoconference or in person. The session format can vary, depending on the needs of the group.
Please note that this training is recognized as part of the Ordre des psychologues du Québec’s continuing education program in psychotherapy .