Mental health

our Oaky Creek Coal (OCC) employees and of the entire Tieri community in Queensland,” Oaky Creek general manager Damien Wynn told Safe to Work

“Paul presented to every crew on site, as well as a community session for the people of Tieri.

“The beauty of these presentations is that they aren’t just applicable to the mining industry. They help to create a network of empathy and resilience, strengthening not only our mines but also our local communities.”

Spinks addressed Glencore’s OCC employees over a course of 90-minute talks held in an openair venue.

With the fans going full blast in the searing March heat of the Bowen Basin, it was no simple task to keep the attention of 150 miners, but Paul managed it with ease.

“The presentations were well received by all,” Glencore said. “Paul shared some confronting but valuable stories from his paramedic work to reinforce the seriousness of lifestyle and mental health issues.

“There was a lot of feedback about the impact of drugs and the discussion around relationships and attempting not to get upset about things that don’t really matter.

And The Wake-Up Call isn’t just aimed at employees.

Many of the Spinks’ lessons on leadership and mental health resound all the way up to the executive level.

“So what’s in it for the employer to take mental and physical health seriously?” Spinks said.

“A happy workforce, a huge return in productivity, and you as a boss feeling good around your troops.

“It’s one thing to be a boss, but it’s quite rewarding to go home at night and know that you played a big role in helping your people become better versions of themselves.”

Spinks has touched the lives of countless people through his work in and out of the ambulance. He recounted the time a man wrote to him from a mine site.

“He told me he’d planned to kill himself that week and was getting all his affairs in order,” Spinks said. “For whatever reason, he came into work the day I was presenting, and he told me it saved him.”

These types of interactions are definitely not isolated occurrences for Spinks.

“I get a lot of that: turning people around when they’re trapped in black holes,” he said.

“I can help them because I’ve been in people’s black holes thousands of times and faceto-face with people negotiating crisis and trauma for 20 years. No university in the land could have ever taught me that skill set.

“Life lessons come in many forms but have never been told like this. Most inspirational messages wash off after a few days, this one will last a lifetime.”