Social and health care workers in Sorø receive wellbeing checks and psychologist calls
A pat on the shoulder and time for listening. Eldercare is about more than paperwork and bottles of pills, but the lack of employees has increased the tempo, so employees are now burning out. In Sorø Municipality, the tired or worn-out social workers are being aided by a new technology that offers tests for well-being and external psychologists.
All over the country, the sector for elderly care seems to be under the most serious pressure regarding the welfare state. According to insight into the municipal figures that the professional journal FOA looked closer at this summer, more than one in five employees had left the field, leading to more unskilled workers taking over caring for the elderly.
Looking at the well-being of social and healthcare assistants, it ranks among the lowest in that particular group of salaried workers. According to research by the Danish Working Environment Authority, almost one in four employees have said that for the past 14 working days, they have felt stressed occasionally, if not all the time.
Now Sorø Municipality offers healthcare workers a well-being checkup via an app, as well as external counseling from psychologists over the phone when needed – through HR-ON Wellbeing.
“It allows me to stop for a second to think about how my professional and private life is going.” – Annemette Trane Hansen
“Has my life been fulfilling?”
Annemette Trane Hansen, staff representative and social and healthcare worker at Egecentret in Sorø, has been using HR-ON Wellbeing since her workplace joined the initiative. Every 14 days she receives five questions via the app on her iPad.
“It allows me to stop for a second to think about how my professional and private life is going: Did I sleep well? Has my life been fulfilling?”
With 30 years of seniority, she sees the preventive effect clearly:
When my father passed away, I could use the questions to see how I felt, and I also knew why I felt that way. I always fill out the questionnaire when it is time.”
She has recommended the app to colleagues, including one who later received a call from the on-call psychologist through HR-ON Wellbeing and is now doing well again.
The solution is anonymous. Management only receives an overall overview of departmental well-being.
“The glue that holds us together”
In 2015, Pia Nyborg Hansen, head of Sorø Health and Care, introduced HR-ON Wellbeing to approximately 650 employees across care centers, home care, nursing and administration.
“We gain insight into an area we normally do not have access to.”
Each month, management receives overall statistics, enabling open conversations if well-being declines.
“If employees thrive, so will the citizens. Proper well-being is the glue that binds us and makes it possible for us to continue working in this profession.”
Psychological security
Neurobiologist and Ph.D. Karen Johanne Pallesen highlights the importance of early stress detection and psychological safety in the workplace.
“It makes a lot of sense to have tools that can discover stress early and help us reach out to each other and have open conversations.”
Stress is both physical and emotional. Negative social signals can trigger fight-or-flight responses, making cooperation difficult. Creating positive social loops at work fosters safety, calm nervous systems, and engagement.
Working environment award
Sorø Municipality’s eldercare area was nominated for the Working Environment Award for psychological working environments in 2019.
Pia Nyborg Hansen advises managers to define the purpose of the tool clearly and act on the data received:
“The technology allows management to raise important questions about well-being. Our responsibility is to focus and act on the data we receive.”
