Training
Pioneering partnership
Rail Professional looks at an initiative to support staff involved in railway suicides, which may even help to save lives
industry as a whole. A programme led by Network Rail and the Samaritans has been working to reduce suicide on the railways since 2010. Innovative and award-winning, the partnership is delivering the first national, co-ordinated suicide reduction programme on the railways. Prevention measures include training frontline rail staff, running campaigns to encourage people to get help and working in partnership to offer support to people who may be at risk of suicide.
T
More than 30 interventions have been reported to the project team at Samaritans, but it is thought that there are many more. Sophie Lapham, strategic programme manager at Samaritans, says, ‘It is really important that we get to hear about these interventions. Firstly, so that the member of staff can be recognised for his or her courageous action, secondly to help us to evaluate the effectiveness of the training, and thirdly for suicide prevention, so that the various agencies are aware of the individual and the location, and can check if anything further needs to be done.’ Jill MacKeith, research manager at RSSB adds, ‘A study showed that over a 10 year period following a suicide attempt, only 10 per cent of people went on to complete suicide. This means that in breaking someone’s suicidal plan, rail staff are not just preventing a suicide on that particular day, but may succeed in preventing the person from taking their life at all.’
Supporting rail staff after fatalities The focus of the programme is on measures to prevent suicide; however, it has quickly become apparent that the partnership needed to do more
here are on average about 200 suicides a year, impacting on a wide range of people directly and indirectly, and on the rail
to support staff who are affected by suicides and other fatalities. A one-day course called Trauma Support Training was developed with Aslef, East Midlands Trains, Network Rail and Samaritans and it aims to equip managers and union representatives with an understanding of trauma and how it affects people, and to give them skills to provide effective support. With exercises based on the real-life experiences of a train driver, the course is also relevant to managers of other staff who are exposed to traumatic experiences, such as station staff and operations staff. Darren Ward, head of ops strategy and implementation at East Midlands Trains, says: ‘Before this programme, the support and advice provided to drivers after they were involved in fatalities could vary massively, even within the same Toc. Samaritans has worked with
the rail industry to develop an accredited training course that helps guide those that manage the welfare of drivers on an individual level.’
Another way of helping drivers has been to develop a booklet, Journey to Recovery which explains what happens when there is a fatality, what reactions a driver might experience and why, and how to get help. The guidance has had input from train operators and Aslef and will be distributed to all drivers via their managers. Chris Gibb, chief operating officer
at Virgin Trains, says: ‘I support fully the industry drive with the Samaritans to focus on prevention of suicides on the railway, and not to accept them as inevitable. Nevertheless, when they do happen our focus turns to looking after our customers and staff and, in particular, the driver. Every driver is an individual with different needs, which we strive to recognise and respond to, sometimes long after the event. This booklet aims to help drivers recover from traumatic events by making them aware of the support available to them.’
For information about training courses or any other aspect of the suicide reduction programme, please contact
railcompanies@samaritans.org
SEPTEMBER 2012 PAGE 9
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60