On-Site Trauma Support
People need more than a policy.
They need a personal response.
When a critical incident happens at work,
how your organisation responds in the days that follow shapes everything:
staff wellbeing, productivity, legal exposure, and your reputation as an employer of care.
Typically on-site within 1 -3 working days
Workplace trauma is more common than most companies realise
” A traumatic incident doesn’t clock out when the shift ends.
Without support, it follows employees home – and returns to work the next morning.”
Whether it’s a fatal accident on the floor, an armed robbery in the store, the sudden death of a colleague, or an act of violence witnessed by your team – workplace trauma leaves a mark. Without proper intervention, that mark compounds.
Higher absenteeism following workplace trauma
Unaddressed trauma fractures workplace relationships and trust
Higher staff turnover as employees reach a breaking point
South African workplaces carry unique stressors – high crime rates, inequality, safety risks across industries, and cultures of stoicism that make it hard for employees to ask for help. Silence is not resilience. It’s a warning sign.
WHAT WE RESPOND TO
Any incident that shakes your team
Workplace accidents, injuries & fatalities
Armed robbery, hijacking & violent crime
Sudden or traumatic death of a colleague
Fire, structural collapse or disaster events
Witnessed violence or aggressive incidents
Suicide or self-harm involving a team member
If your team as experienced something that has visibly shaken morale, productivity, or psychological safety – it qualifies.
HOW IT WORKS
Simple to access. Significant in impact.
You make contact
You can make contact via phone, Whatsapp or e-mail. A good approach is a brief phone call followed up by an e-mail that describes the incident and the support you need. An on-site session is then scheduled – depending on the circumstances, within 1- 3 days.
We come to your workplace
The session takes place on-site, in a setting familiar to your team. No one has to navigate to an external offider or explain why they’re leaving work. The intervention comes to them.
- Meeting with Manager/HR/Referring Person: Before we meet with the team, we meeting the person who made the referral, or the team manager. During this brief meeting, we clarify the details of the event, expectations, and anything we need to know about the team, so we can be most helpful to them.
- Group Session: We meet with the team in a venue on-site that is safe and comfortable. The structure and content of this session will depend on the specific needs of the team, and may involve psychoeducation about trauma responses, general support and guidance with regards to self-care, and what to expect in the days ahead. Depending on the needs of the group, follow-up sessions may also be arranged.
- Feedback Meeting & Management Support: Following the session with the team or group, we meeting again with the referring person to provide brief feedback regarding the group session, make recommendations about how to support the team and a way forward, and provide support to managing staff who may also be affected by the event.
- Report: Following the group interventions, a brief report is provided.
WHY IT MATTERS TO YOUR BUSINESS
It’s not just the right thing. It’s the smart thing.
Organisations that invest in post-incident psychological care see measurable returns – not just in staff morale, but in the metrics that matter to leadership.
Reduced absenteeism
Early intervention interrupts the cycle of avoidance, presenteeism, and sick leave that follows unaddressed trauma.
Compliance risk
South African occupational health law obliges employers to provide a psychologically safe environment. Demonstrating action protects you.
Retention and trust
How you respond in a crisis defines your culture. Employees remember whether their employer showed up for them.
Faster return to productivity
Teams that process trauma together recover cohesion faster. Unaddressed trauma fragments team dynamics for months.
The cost of one on-site trauma session is a fraction of a single week’s absenteeism, let alone a CCMA dispute or staff resignation.
WHO DELIVERS THIS
Werner van der Westhuizen
Werner is a clinical social worker in private practice, based in Gqeberha. His background spans individual therapy, group work, and organisational consulting – with specialist training in trauma support and crisis intervention. He brings expertise mixed with compassion and authentic engagement.
Werner also works with other consultants to deliver services to larger teams where needed.
GET IN TOUCH
Be ready before you need this
The organisations that respond best to critical incidents are the ones that have already made a plan.
Reach out now to discuss how on-site trauma support can fit into your employee wellbeing strategy.
