This would have changed my life

From unprocessed trauma to a program designed to make a difference

A new two-year project funded by WorkSafe Victoria’s Return to Work Innovations division is trialling an innovative approach to support emergency services workers recovering from mental injury and committed to returning to work.

Delivered by the Emergency Services Foundation (ESF), the Residential Wellbeing Program provides early, intensive support to help workers process trauma, rebuild confidence, and return to work sooner and more safely. The program targets workers from Victoria Police, Ambulance Victoria, Triple Zero and Fire Rescue Victoria, and will assess its impact on their recovery and return to work within six months.

For ESF CEO Siusan MacKenzie, the program is deeply personal.

“This is born out of my lived experience,” she says.

A trauma that stayed for decades

Years ago, Siusan was Head of Communications at the CFA when five volunteers lost their lives. She wasn’t on the frontline - but was immersed in the aftermath, from communications to coronial processes and prolonged exposure to grief. For Siusan, it was vicarious trauma but like many in emergency services, she kept going.

“I went through a traumatic event that was never processed,” she says.

It took decades to understand the impact on her mental health. “To have had a program like this would have been life-changing for me,” she reflects. “I wouldn’t have suffered for 20 years, wondering what was going on.”

A system under pressure

Emergency services workers operate in high-pressure environments and face repeated exposure to trauma and operational stress. Demand is rising, incidents are more complex and conditions are changing.

“It used to be a defined fire season,” Siusan says. “Now with climate change, it’s one disaster event after another.”

The data highlights the need for earlier, tailored support. Seventeen per cent of new WorkCover claims relate to mental injury. These claims result in longer time off work and poorer outcomes than physical injuries. Only 43% of workers with mental injury return to work within six months.

Research shows the longer someone is off work, the less likely they are to return - driven by loss of routine, social connection and purpose, alongside growing physical and psychological barriers.

Emergency services workers are particularly at risk. The Public Administration and Safety sector records some of the highest claim volumes, with higher rates of mental injury and poorer recovery outcomes. Delays in support further reduce the likelihood of returning to work.

What’s clear - from both research and lived experience - is that when return to work is safe, supported and timely, it plays a critical role in recovery.

“Being in a workplace is better for us. We’re connected to people, we have purpose,” Siusan says. “In emergency services, the work is deeply meaningful so getting people back to work is incredibly beneficial to them.”

A different kind of program

The Residential Wellbeing Program was designed in response to this challenge, providing a range of evidence-based clinical strategies to support workers with an approved mental injury claim - at a point in their recovery journey when timely intervention can have the greatest impact.

It offers a four-day residential experience for small groups of peers, led by clinician facilitators with deep sector understanding. The focus is on processing trauma, building practical skills, and creating a clear pathway back to work.

The model is unique in its structured support of workers early in the recovery journey. Unlike existing services, which are often delivered individually or in outpatient settings, this pilot removes injured workers from their daily environment and places them in a residential setting focused on recovery with peers. For Siusan, that design is deliberate.

“People wanted facilitators who understood their world,” she says. “They needed a safe space - real time out to reflect, process and understand what’s causing their distress.”

The power of shared experience

At its core, the program is about connection.

Emergency services workers often carry experiences that are difficult to explain. Even with support, that can lead to isolation. Bringing together people who understand each other changes that.

“The camaraderie, the solidarity - that connection is incredibly important,” Siusan says.

Participants talk, listen and reflect - often beginning to process what they’ve been carrying for the first time.

“At the end of every program, people say things like ‘This changed my life’,” she adds.

Participants are supported to rebuild confidence, understand their capacity, develop practical strategies, and take steps back into meaningful work – reflecting a growing understanding that recovery and return to work are closely linked.

A partnership for change

The initiative reflects Return to Work Innovations’ mandate to partner with organisations to drive innovation and improve return to work outcomes. Through this collaboration with ESF, WorkSafe Victoria is testing an early, tailored model grounded in evidence and lived experience - part of a broader effort to strengthen recovery and return to work across the system.

Looking ahead

The project will run from July 2026 to June 2028, delivering 20 programs to approximately 160 participants. It will be independently evaluated to measure its impact on recovery and return to work outcomes.

For Siusan, its value is already clear. She has seen people arrive overwhelmed and uncertain - and leave with clarity, confidence and direction. It offers something Siusan didn’t have: early support, understanding and space to process trauma.

“To have had this… would have been a game changer for me,” she says.

Now, that opportunity exists for others. And for many emergency services workers, it could change everything, putting them on a path to recovery and back to work.

More information about the Residential Wellbeing Program