Emotional demand—the psychological toll of exposure to client trauma that contributes to vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, and moral injury—is a defining hazard of mental health work. Yet organisational responses often default to individual self-care and resilience-building approaches. This presentation disrupts this paradigm by repositioning emotional demand as a manageable workplace hazard requiring systematic risk controls. Aligning with Australia’s evolving WHS regulations and drawing on recent research, lived experience and case studies, the presentation will discuss the barriers and facilitators to preventing and managing the hazards associated with emotional demand. Moving beyond personal coping strategies to examine job design, supervision structures, and organisational culture and policies, this presentation shares practical, evidence-based strategies that consider regulatory obligations while genuinely protecting workforce wellbeing.

Three Key Learnings
1. Emotional demand is a psychosocial hazard that requires organisational controls, beyond self-care and resilience.
2. The barriers and facilitators to proactively addressing emotional demand and the need to comply with Australian WHS regulations.
3. The case for proactive prevention with evidence-based strategies for proactive emotional demand management from real-world settings.