Psychosocial Health Safety Campaigns That “Stick”

As the discussion around psychosocial health and safety continues to gain momentum, key themes include the importance of targeted awareness campaigns, the necessity of leadership engagement, and the effectiveness of storytelling in communicating risks. Professionals in this space know that campaigns and messaging will be ineffective unless they are delivered in a way that resonates and “sticks” with employees. 

Ahead of the 2nd Annual Women in Health and Safety Summit 2025, Quest Events spoke with Cara Williams (Head of Business Partnering, Bolton Clarke), Jen Falco (Head of Health, Safety & Wellbeing, Barwon Water), and Rhian O’Sullivan (Senior Legal Counsel, Energy Queensland) to gain their insights. 

Can you share an example of a psychosocial health and safety campaign that resonated with employees?

O’Sullivan, who works in the energy sector, is enthusiastic about Mates in Energy, an industry-specific suicide awareness and prevention program that has resonated with employees. “EQL’s current Mental Health Manager was instrumental in the introduction of this peer-to-peer support and awareness program to the energy sector and was recognised for this work when he was named as one of four finalists for Queensland’s Local Hero title”, she says. “The program is designed to boost awareness of mental illness, stripping away the fear, ignorance and stigma which can make people reluctant to seek help. The Mates program uses a tiered training approach to raise awareness about suicide and some of the issues that might be contributing to this in the energy industry, and how employees can be part of the solution.” 

The Mates in Energy program also provides support that is practical. Participants are able to complete a Connector training session to have the opportunity to become a volunteer to connect someone who is struggling to find the right help. A number of Connectors choose to go on and complete the ASIST training (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) which equips them to develop a personalised safety plan in conjunction with the individual until they can be connected to further support.

Williams says that in aged care, occupational violence/aggression is a psychosocial risk exposure, particularly from a frequency perspective. “We have focused on a holistic approach to managing this risk including understanding potential contributing factors and how we can minimise these through a proactive, person-centred approach,” she explained. “We have had success in raising situational awareness and proactive hazard identification through the use of virtual reality and immersive experiences during onboarding in the past, as well as the use of case studies to embed understanding of person-centred approaches and how practical steps can optimise wellbeing and experiences for our employees and those in our care.” A co-designed occupational violence and aggression training package was also beneficial for team members who work in community settings, reinforcing the range of behaviours that are not considered acceptable, the importance of reporting, and the steps available to manage these risks.

Falco describes a program that is currently in progress in anticipation of Victoria’s proposed OHS Act amendments. “Barwon Water conducted a detailed risk assessment of psychosocial hazards and has developed and circulated a toolbox. It resonates with employees through the linking of psychosocial safety, leadership and culture and has resulted in psychosocial hazard management being embedded directly into leadership accountabilities, KPIs and our organisational values.”

What advice would you offer to health and safety professionals who struggle to persuade leadership of the importance of taking action on psychosocial health and safety?

“If you can understand the pain points and interest areas for your leaders, you can tailor your messaging accordingly”, advises Williams. “If they are motivated by reducing claims costs or safety regulator risk, then that may inform your approach. Otherwise, focusing on positive benefits of taking action such as employee wellbeing, engagement and productivity may be more successful. For example, focusing on engaging staff to collaboratively identify and mitigate risk could positively impact productivity or reduce the costs of turnover.” 

“There are both moral and business performance reasons why this is so important “, says Falco. “It’s about protecting people and strengthening the organisation. Psychosocial health and safety can be directly linked to tangible outcomes such as reduced incidents and injury, reduced absenteeism, lower costs, improved productivity and improved employee retention. Use data, case studies and voice of employees to demonstrate how even practical, low-cost actions that build trust can drive resilience and sustainable performance improvements.”

O’Sullivan believes the way we engage with leadership on the importance of taking action with respect to psychosocial health and safety can be influenced by three critical factors: 

“First, what is the importance of this issue to the individual? How does managing psychosocial safety impact that person? For example, this might involve highlighting potential personal legal liability to leadership. Secondly, what is the importance of this issue to the broader organisation? This might involve highlighting how managing psychosocial safety is not only part of being a good corporate citizen but is good for business (less absenteeism, increased productivity). There are also reputational risks if it is not managed effectively”, O’Sullivan continues. “Finally, how does management of this issue align with our organisational values? Managing psychosocial safety might be core to your values as an organisation. Pointing out to leaders that taking action aligns with organisational values can be really powerful”.

Do you adapt your language and messaging for different groups or levels within the organisation, or do you believe that psychosocial health and safety messaging should be uniform? 

“Keep the core message the same, but tailor the framing and call to action for the audience”, advises Falco. “Different groups and levels within an organisation have different motivations, safety awareness and maturity. and differences in what they can control and influence. The messaging needs to be consistent but relevant to the audience.”

Williams believes that, as with other safety messaging, information needs to be tailored to the audience and context to ensure that it lands appropriately, is not tokenistic and results in action or application. “We have a very diverse staff cohort with a range of backgrounds and familiarity with concepts related to psychosocial risk management”, she says. “Additionally, the psychosocial hazard profile may be very different for different team members or staff groups and thus a tailored approach is required. To get buy-in and engagement, the messaging and recommended actions should be aligned to the person’s experience, potential pain points and circle of control.”

In O’Sullivan’s view, the broad messaging should be the same at all levels – ensuring psychosocial safety it is a critical part of running a business and can have adverse outcomes if not managed appropriately. Equally important is making sure that the information that is being provided on this issue at all levels of the business is easily digestible. “There are multiple sources of data that can provide indications of how the business is tracking when it comes to managing psychosocial safety, such as surveys, exit data, grievances, and informal discussions”, she says. “The art is being able to distil those sources of information into a digestible format so the critical messages can be conveyed and the business as a whole is able to readily identify psychosocial hazards and understand what controls are in place to manage those hazards effectively.”

O’Sullivan adds that while all levels of an organisation have a role to play in managing psychosocial safety, leaders play a critical role in recognising, intervening and preventing conduct prior to the escalation of more serious behaviours. “It is important to equip leaders with the tools to communicate workforce expectations about respectful and unacceptable behaviour and to recognise early warning signs of potential harm and de-escalation techniques. Through our leaders, key learnings can be shared to help drive positive cultural change and equip others in how to manage and respond to psychosocial hazards.”

In your experience, what role does storytelling play in effectively conveying the importance of psychosocial health and safety? 

“At Barwon Water, we often talk about the ‘gut, head, heart’ connection; how we use our intuition and instinct, logic and knowledge, and our emotions to make wiser decisions”, says Falco. “Storytelling, particularly about real incidents, is a powerful way to make these connections and help the messages really hit home. Although we are in a fast-growing area, the Barwon Region is still very much a close-knit community, so people can often see first-hand the impacts of when health and safety is done well, and not so well.”

Williams believes storytelling provides an avenue to effectively communicate key messages that resonate with staff members. “We utilise case studies as part of our education campaign to make the principles practical and ‘real’ for our employees. A couple of simple examples resonated well in the ‘see change, think pain’ campaign focused on person-centred approaches to reduce OVA triggers. Our co-designed OVA education program for community-based nurses and care workers focused on the practical application of principles based on real-life stories of our people. Telling stories of challenging, escalating situations based on previous non-reporting helped drive a reporting culture shift.”

O’Sullivan agrees that storytelling can be a really powerful tool in conveying the importance of managing psychosocial health. “It helps to put matters into a practical context and demonstrate things which may work well in managing this risk, and things which might not work so well, and the consequences of that. Sharing stories contributes to transparency and may encourage others in the workplace to come forward and share concerns or matters that they have identified which undermine psychosocial safety in the workplace. Storytelling is a fundamental part of continuous learning and helps make situations more relatable”, she adds.  

What methods do you recommend for measuring the effectiveness of communication strategies related to psychosocial health and safety?

“This requires a multi-layered approach”, says Falco. “Tracking reach is straightforward, by measuring attendance, participation, and views/clicks. But it requires further follow-up to understand how well the message has been understood, and how it has translated into behavioural changes and improved outcomes. These checks might involve collecting stories and questions from different teams, for example by asking them to list their top five risks and the ways they control these. Looking at a mix of lead and lag indicators to see how they are trending is also important. A quick test we use for messaging is to ask 1) Did people see it? 2) Did they understand it? 3) Are they doing something as a result of it? 4) (And then after a few months) – Are they still doing it?

Williams believes that to be effective, information needs to be exchanged between parties with clarity, empathy, and understanding. “In a diverse, dispersed workforce, a range of modalities should be employed to ensure key messages are received and applicable in multiple settings. Using practical applications and opportunities to apply principles to case studies or real-life applications can help with ensuring understanding and embedding information”, she adds. “Individual commitment cards have also been valuable for people engaging with strategies they can employ to aid with risk control. Finally, incorporating knowledge checks and understanding into learning materials can help with assurance of applied understanding.” 

“There is no one-size-fits-all approach, says O’Sullivan. “Each organisation is unique and has different drivers based on matters such as size, industry and demographics. A communication strategy’s effectiveness will depend on whether the content has been retained and acted upon by employees. Do employees remember the training they have received? Have they felt safe to speak up in their organisation because it has been made clear that doing so is an important part of the organisation’s culture and values?” 

“You can ‘test’ whether information has been retained through various formats such as quizzes and discussions”, O’Sullivan continues. “Ultimately, however, the effectiveness of communication strategies can largely be measured by considering the actions and conduct of the workforce. For example, because the data reveals that more people are reporting psychosocial hazards or because psychosocial safety is an ongoing agenda item with high visibility.”   

Continue the conversation

Hear more from Cara Williams, Rhian O’Sullivan, Jen Falco, and other thought-leaders at the Women in Health and Safety Summit 2025, 19th to 21st November at Rydges North Sydney.