Sarah Donnelly: How work kept me going during my cancer treatment
莎菈·唐諾莉: 工作如何在癌症治療期間協助我走下去
Westpac's Sarah Donnelly wants to encourage more open conversations about why and how an individual might continue to work while undergoing treatment for serious illnesses. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
from my doctor's office
in my lunch break, and my doctor said
去找我的醫生,她說
that I had breast cancer.
and at first, I didn't.
一開始,我的確不相信。
and I needed some evidence.
to where she was sitting
over her shoulder and verify
on the page in front of her.
to believe it, I said,
you're sure that means cancer?"
它的意思就是癌症嗎?」
the urgent things that needed to be done
需要處理的急事都交付出去,
to see if my cancer had spread.
看我的癌症是否有擴散。
work wasn't my priority.
工作不是我的第一要務。
to tell my family and friends
告訴我的家人和朋友
and whether I was going to be OK,
to start a family.
how I was going to tell my mother,
when she was pregnant with me.
to have to relive her cancer experience.
再走過一次她的癌症經驗。
a huge role in my treatment and recovery.
扮演很重要的角色。
otherwise felt like a statistic.
會覺得自己只是統計數字。
that would give me routine and stability
例行公事和穩定性,
difficult personal decisions
reconstruction I was going to have.
to my family and friends for support.
我應該向家人朋友尋求支持。
in my day-to-day life.
the ones to make me laugh.
of really good in-jokes,
才知道的笑話,
someone ask me
不小心聽到有人問我
of course, a wig,
in the mornings very easy.
梳妝整理變得很容易。
I appreciated what their support meant,
我很感謝他們的支持帶給我的意義,
have done without that network.
我不知道我該怎麼辦。
women in particular,
to have that network
the opportunity to work through treatment.
都沒有機會工作。
to overly paternalistic employers.
僱主太過家長作風了。
and focus on yourself.
專注在自己身上就好。
are well-meaning,
我就會覺得非常灰心,
that they couldn’t or shouldn't work,
and physically can do.
且身體上也能夠辦到。
what an employer is required to do
with a cancer diagnosis.
cancer is considered a disability.
癌症被視為殘疾。
your usual work duties,
你平常的工作職責,
by the Disability Discrimination Act
to your working arrangements,
adjustments look like for me?
my diagnosis was going to have on work.
會有哪些明顯的影響。
during business hours,
to recover from surgical procedures.
我會需要時間恢復。
on what to expect from treatment.
我已做了法律相關的盡職調查。
was through Doctor Google,
是通過 Google 教授做的,
and I wouldn't recommend that.
我不建議這麼做。
for all the physical side effects,
所有身體上的副作用,
was this thing called chemo brain.
是所謂的「化療腦」。
through memory loss,
my job as a lawyer.
have a discussion with my manager
to my working arrangements
how I was going to be impacted?
a supportive manager
how things went as we went along,
a concrete plan up front.
he may not have even known
of reasonable adjustments,
common sense to everyone.
will learn how it impacts them
都會了解到治療對他們的影響,
that I learned about the treatment itself,
我學到了一些密訣和訣竅,
you're really well hydrated
the nurses to find your veins.
能協助護士找到你的靜脈。
any of your favorite food,
throwing that up
want to look at it again.
for managing my workflow.
我的工作流程的訣竅。
on a Monday morning.
星期一早上的第一件事。
I left the cancer care unit,
before this fog screen would come down
接著霧幕就會出現,
and make any urgent calls.
收件匣並打一些緊急的電話。
within about 48 hours.
48 小時以內就過去。
into work from home.
and I knew what to expect.
而我知道該預期什麼。
with my business partners
設下合理的期望,
the hesitation in their voices
遲疑的聲音來找我,
by a certain time.
of setting a good deadline.
to put any extra pressure on me
在我身上增加額外的壓力,
within my control
that could stay in my control
things that couldn't.
should be applying this concept
這個時代,僱主要如何把
in our current age,
男性及女性中就有一位,
by the age of 85.
longer and longer into older age,
我們的年齡也在增長,
while we're in the workforce
得到嚴重疾病的可能性
to work anywhere, any time,
在任何地方、任何時間工作,
are no longer contingent upon
to physically make it
實體的辦公室工作。
or a comfier chair to sit in,
和更舒服的座椅,
the flexibility policies and strategies
with family responsibilities.
are even having a conversation
might look like for them
until you're better."
都別回來上班。」
with their employees.
from working through treatment,
to guide these conversations,
colleague of mine, Camilla Gunn,
卡蜜拉甘恩(Camilla Gunn),
「帶著癌症工作」工具組。
for those diagnosed,
給被診斷出癌症的人、
and their coworkers
以及他們的同事,
and the work support available.
以及可得的工作支援進行對談。
to other organizations
some pretty awkward conversations.
相當尷尬的對談。
of the toolkit is increasing.
越來越多人在使用這套工具組。
a manager's first response
how it's going to impact their work?
如何影響他們的工作?
are able, and want to,
an arrangement for you
people with serious illness
患有嚴重疾病的人員,
pushing them away.
because I want you to know the benefits
是因為我希望你們能夠了解
going through treatment
were true some of the time,
to push myself at work
because my employer gave me the choice.
是因為我的僱主給我這個選擇。
obvious choice to give someone,
應該要給予這個選擇,
offered or encouraged.
被提供或被鼓勵提供。
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sarah Donnelly - LawyerWestpac's Sarah Donnelly wants to encourage more open conversations about why and how an individual might continue to work while undergoing treatment for serious illnesses.
Why you should listen
Sarah Donnelly was diagnosed with breast cancer at 30 years of age -- a story all too familiar among young women in her family. She chose to continue full-time employment throughout treatment and is living proof that work can play a crucial role in a person's mental and physical recovery from a serious illness. While her employer backed her decision, Donnelly has learned that the way organizations approach this issue varies greatly. This has sparked a personal mission to encourage more open conversations about why and how an individual might continue to work while undergoing treatment.
A lawyer by trade, Donnelly is currently the Head of Group Secretariat at Westpac. She is an ally for GLOBAL, Westpac Group's Employee Action Group for LGBTIQ employees, a member of Women of Westpac, an advocate of Breast Cancer Network Australia and volunteers with Vinnie’s Van. She is an avid traveler and, when at home in Sydney's Blue Mountains, can usually be found out on a trail.
Sarah Donnelly | Speaker | TED.com