Strategy Implementation
This strategy moves beyond traditional approaches to workplace health through a comprehensive approach that includes all dimensions of health, identifies the types of organizational supports necessary to maximize the improvement of health and wellness, and targets all spheres of influence. The five LoEs that were developed in the creation of the THWS are the drivers behind the implementation of the THWS, outlining the five main areas of targeted action through the THWS.
Overview of Action Items
The action items included within the THWS action plan come from four different sources.
Strategic action items are action items that were identified to address the strategic objectives. Once the LoEs were identified, strategic objectives were developed in order to further specify how each LoE would be addressed within the THWS. From that, more specific action items were developed and endorsed by stakeholders to tangibly address the broader strategic objectives. As identification of primary points of contact were not identified in the creation of these items, discussions were held throughout FY 21/22 with the Total Health and Wellness Sub-Committee. Monitoring of these items will begin FY 22/23 once appropriate points of contact can be identified.
THWS core action items These action items received additional funding to support the THWS activities. Through the 2016 Defence Policy Review, shortfalls were identified after the completion of consultations and roundtables to identify health and wellness support needed for the Defence Team. To address these shortfalls, SSE committed to creating the THWS and outlined specific activities to be addressed through the strategy. The THWS core action items are the resulting actions items that address these commitments.
Stakeholder identified action items are action items that were identified and presented to the THWS team by stakeholders as ones that would address the goals and objectives of the THWS. Through consultation and further discussion with stakeholders, these items were added to contribute to the comprehensiveness of the THWS.
Suicide Prevention Action Plan (SPAP) transfer action items are action items that were identified in the 2019 CAF SPAP annual report to be re-aligned under the new THWS. The 62 items identified to be transferred were determined to be more relevant to the strategic outcomes of the THWS, notably those that are more focused on general health and wellness, rather than the strategic outcomes of the CAF SPAP. This re-alignment will allow the CAF SPAP to have a more strategic focus on suicide prevention, and add to the comprehensiveness of the holistic THWS. During the realignment process, the SPAP action items were reviewed and sorted into one of the five LoEs of the THWS. Stakeholders were then consulted to report on the status of these items to determine the phase of their implementation. Through the realignment process, it was noted that some of the action items discussed the same overarching project, or were more granular parts of a higher-level action item already in the action plan. To reduce redundancy, overlapping action items were re-aligned as follows:
- Overarching, or “umbrella,” action items were given an action item number (e.g.: 12)
- All related action items covered by the umbrella action item were given a decimal action item number corresponding to the umbrella action item (e.g. 12.1)
- Through consultations with stakeholders, it was determined whether these items would require their own summary and become a “sub-action item” in the THW action plan, or be rolled up into the overarching umbrella action item. This decision was based off the granularity of the action item, and whether important information to be reported could be adequately covered by a summary for the umbrella action item.
- All action items being rolled up into an overarching action item are presented in this report for tracking purposes, but will not be delineated moving forwards. These items are excluded from the total count of action and sub-action items as they will not be individually monitored through the THW action plan.
To see a detailed summary of the re-alignment of the 62 SPAP transfer action items into 59 THWS action and sub-action items, see Annex C.
Strategic Objectives and Outcomes
Within each of the five LoEs of the THWS, the strategic objectives outline more specific focus areas that are being addressed to improve the health and wellness of Defence Team members. The THWS action items have been sorted under each objective to demonstrate how the objectives are being addressed across the Defence Team. Therefore, monitoring the implementation of action items ultimately strives to achieve a positive impact on outcomes related to health and wellness. Through the development of the strategy, a logic model was developed to outline how strategic action items lead to immediate, intermediate, and ultimate outcomes. As the development of the strategy continued and additional action items were identified to reside under the THWS umbrella, these action items were connected to the strategic outcomes as well.
A high-level summary of the immediate, intermediate, and ultimate outcomes connected to each strategic objective can be found in Table 1.
Table 1: THWS Strategic Objectives and the Associated Outcomes
| LoE | Strategic Objectives | Immediate Outcomes (Awareness & Knowledge) | Intermediate Outcomes (Attitudes & Behaviours) | Ultimate Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 – Communicate, Educate, Collaborate | 1a – Increase knowledge of THW through collective health and wellness promotion activities | DT members are aware of programs and services available to assist them |
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Total health and wellness among the Defence Team, resulting in a strengthened workforce that is best positioned operational effectiveness and the fulfillment of Canada’s Defence mandate |
| 1b – Increase THW literacy through harmonized training and education | DT members have knowledge of THW and understand the principles and concepts of how to achieve optimal health and wellness | |||
| DT members understand the risks and benefits associated with THW | ||||
| 1c – Engage champions and advocates to promote a comprehensive understanding of THW | Not Applicable. | |||
| 2 – Strengthen Governance | 2a – Engage the Defence Team – HR Committee (DTHRC) THW Sub-Committee | THW initiatives and efforts are prioritized, sustained, and progressing as a high priority for the CAF/DND | THW initiatives and efforts are well informed and supported at both regional and national levels to advance the THW of the DT | |
| 2b – Integrate Base and Wing Health and Wellness Committees | THW initiatives and efforts apply lessons learned and evidence-based decision making to facilitate continuous improvement efforts | |||
| 2c – Build a THW monitoring framework for continuous improvement | ||||
| 3 – Enable a Healthier Workplace | 3a – Employ continuous assessment to solutions approach to understand the needs of the workforce | THW initiatives, programs and services’ owners have access to and are aware of the DT health and wellness research available | THW initiatives, programs, and services’ owners are using DND/CAF research to inform their program designs and decision making practices | |
| Continuous DT health and wellness assessment provides THW initiatives, programs and services’ owners with a better understanding of the needs of the DT workforce to support continuous improvements | ||||
| 3b – Address workplace stressors to increase workplace well-being | Reduced risk of harassment and violence in the workplace |
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| DT members have positive workplace well-being | ||||
| 3c – Empower leadership to better balance organizational demands and the needs of their people | DT leaders are empowered to effectively balance the health and wellness of their members with the goals of their organization | |||
| DT leaders are actively engaged in supporting the THW of the DT | ||||
| 3d – Embrace a culture of THW | A workplace culture that promotes THW across the DT | |||
| 4 – Improve Access to Care and Support | 4a – Improve availability of services to meet the wellness needs of all Defence Team members | THW related programs and services are available to meet the regional needs of DT members | Improved access to care and support has a positive impact on THW of DT members | |
| 4b – Increase accessibility to programs and services across the Defence Team | DT members have improved access to THW programs and services | |||
| 4c – Identify and reduce barriers to health and wellness | Barriers to care and support that impact on the health and wellness of DT members are reduced | |||
| 5 – Align and Integrate | 5a – Increase THW stakeholder collaboration for a comprehensive approach to health and wellness | Increase in THW stakeholder collaboration for integration and alignment of efforts and activities | Integrated and aligned THW efforts reduce the number of gaps and barriers for a comprehensive approach to health and wellness for DT members | |
| 5b – Conduct a policy review to ensure relevant and responsive guidance and direction | Responsive and relevant THW policies provide guidance and direction to programs and services | |||
| 5c – Conduct a review of THW programs to improve alignment and integration | Not Applicable. |
Performance Measurement
In order to track the performance and results of the THWS, a performance measurement framework (PMF) was developed. The PMF serves as a high-level comprehensive view of the effectiveness of the THWS implementation through measuring the strategic outcomes, highlighting successes and areas for improvement. At this time, not all indicators contained in the PMF can be measured and reported. As some data sources have yet to be developed, these indicators will begin reporting when they are available. The indicators that can be measured and where data is available from FY 18/19 and FY 21/22 can be found in Annex D