what we do

managing with illness or death at work – coping professionally

Are you managing someone who is ill or dying? How do you manage your team when a death or tragedy has occurred? How do you cope professionally if it is you that is seriously ill? Grave illness and death are still social taboos, often swept under the carpet when we don't know what to say or how to behave with someone. However, we live in a time where life-threatening illnesses and tragedy are increasingly affecting people in the workplace.

 

Case study: Alan, 27, went to Africa on holiday. A few days after getting home he was admitted to hospital with a viral infection. Within four days all of his systems shut down and he died. The whole company went into shock as Alan was a much-loved colleague and a mainstay of the company. No-one could focus on work, negativity set in and the company, in the main, was rendered inoperative. We coached the CEO as to how he and all of the staff might like to acknowledge Alan.

 

They decided to close the company for the day and hold their own service for him at work where they all talked about him and celebrated who he had been to them. The day created an opportunity for people to move on and within a week the company was operating normally once again.

 

Managing illness and death in the workplace is a challenge. Coaching would help you to:

 

- work responsively to a demanding situation

- talk sensitively with people affected

- plan to accommodate health requirements

- create sensitive succession planning

 

If you working whilst you are chronically or seriously ill coaching can help you:

 

- to feel less isolated

- to identify and strengthen your coping mechanisms

- to gain clarity regarding your options

- to structure your work in a way that best accommodates your condition

- to plan, if appropriate, your exit strategy from work

 

To discuss coaching for illness or a death at work, contact us.