Vicarious Trauma at Work: 20 Practical Takeaways to Avoid Psychological Injury

Vicarious trauma is one of the most overlooked psychosocial hazards at work, especially in high exposure roles like law, insurance, health, and frontline services. In this episode of The Resolution Room, I’m joined by Vanessa Daniel from MLCOA to share 20 practical takeaways for reducing the risk of psychological injury from vicarious trauma, and to make the conversation more useful than the usual “just be resilient” advice.We talk about how workplace health and safety is shifting beyond physical risks and into psychosocial risk management, including what employers and leaders need to understand about their duty to identify, assess, and control these risks. We also unpack why culture matters, why high performers often do not self report, and how regular check ins, training, and supervisor capability can change outcomes before people hit a wall.This is a practical episode for managers, HR, and professionals working with distressing material who want clear, workplace-ready strategies. We cover risk assessments, de-stigmatising help-seeking, structured debriefing, and why vicarious trauma needs to be treated as a leadership issue, not a personal weakness. If you are searching for vicarious trauma workplace strategies, psychosocial safety, or how to prevent psychological injury at work, this conversation will give you a strong starting point.CHAPTER MARKERS00:00 Introduction02:05 Psychosocial Safety Shift04:06 Legal Duties And Key Case06:43 Acknowledge Exposure08:05 Stop Blaming Resilience08:57 Risk Assessments And Controls11:13 Cumulative Exposure Matters12:58 Train Staff And Supervisors14:13 Beyond Self Reporting15:38 Trauma Informed Supervision16:45 Rotating Trauma Caseloads17:30 Monitor Workload Pressure18:31 Reduce Unnecessary Exposure19:27 Protocols for Graphic Evidence19:48 Job Rotation and Mixed Work21:33 Structured Debriefing Culture23:02 Peer Support and Access27:51 Leadership Owns the RiskMore From Damien:Website | LinkedIn | YouTubeWORK WITH ME:Book a Mediation or a 15-minute Discovery call with Damien: https://www.evolveresolve.com/booking Website: https://www.evolveresolve.com/ LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/damien-van-brunschot YouTube: @evolveresolve Email: [email protected] Disclaimer: The content of this podcast is general information only and does not constitute legal or medical advice.©2026 mlcoa | Law, Medicine & Everything in Between.