WORKPLACE COLLABORATION
BY DR. SHARI FRISINGER
THE HEALTH OF YOUR DEPARTMENT
DO YOU KNOW HOW HEALTHY YOUR DEPARTMENT IS? TAKE A MOMENT AND THINK ABOUT THIS: THE HEALTH OF YOUR DEPARTMENT IS DIRECTLY TIED TO THE HEALTH OF EACH INDIVIDUAL IN YOUR DEPARTMENT. MUCH LIKE YOU ARE ONLY AS STRONG AS YOUR WEAKEST LINK, NO SYSTEMS, PROCESSES OR PROCEDURES WILL BE AS EFFECTIVE IF YOUR TEAM MEMBERS ARE NOT HEALTHY. UNDOUBTEDLY, SAFETY WILL BE ADVERSELY AFFECTED.
THREE COMPONENTS OF
HEALTH FATIGUE When we speak of health, we are not talking only about the physical. One area of health continues to be at the forefront of lawmakers’ and aviation experts’ attention is fatigue. The FAA lists physical, mental and emotional elements of fatigue. Let’s look at the simpler of the
two components to identify: physical health and fatigue. It is relatively easy to know when you are physically tired:
– your stuff ed head feels like it is going to explode
– your feet become sore after a short time standing
– your arms do not have the strength they have had in the past
– you force your eyes to stay open, wondering when the extra cup of coff ee or can of soda will kick in
These physical symptoms are easy
to recognize in yourself and to notice in others, and are fairly straightforward to resolve. Others will notice you shaking your arms, shifting your weight between your feet, your ever- present cup or glass, and/or your near- constant yawning. The remedy for these is to rest your muscles, get to the source of the irritation and/or sleep. The more diffi cult component is the second part of the FAA’s fatigue aspect: mental and emotional. Because your mental state has a direct and clear infl uence on your emotional state, and vice versa, we will work with these as one entity. Mental health, or how clearly you are thinking, is elusive to detect and resolve. This is partially because it involves emotions (feelings), both yours and others’. Dealing with feelings can be uncomfortable and messy; it can also be inspirational and cathartic.
Contrary to popular belief, emotions are neither good nor bad, positive nor negative. It is how you interpret them that labels them and your subsequent actions as “should haves” or “should not haves.” You can believe you had good reasons to yell and sound off , yet someone else sees your reaction as unprofessional or unwarranted. Laughing and smiling because you are leaving for the day (regardless of the reason) when others have to work late to get the aircraft ready for tomorrow’s fl ight can foster resentment and irritation. The other reason why mental/ emotional health is more diffi cult is the awareness of your thoughts or lack of this awareness. Do you know when your thoughts have strayed? Do you know when you are being irrational? Do you know when you have overreacted? Most of my clients initially say, “Yes, of course I do”.
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DOMmagazine.com | march 2016
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