I recently attended a couple of seminars and workshops in the UK under the heading of ‘Mental health in the workplace’.
This phrase has become increasingly used to attract business owners and managers to make them aware of how to care for staff and introduce policies to ensure workers are looked after at the workplace. It is really another phrase for ‘stress at work’.
It is unfortunate that just as we have managed to get management and business owners to appreciate the importance of managing stress at work, someone comes along with the concept of dealing with mental health in the workplace.
I have no problem with this. However, I have noticed that many owners and managers were put off because they were not sure what it referred to. Every one of us will have our own definition of mental health in the workplace and some of these definitions may not be stress-related.
The partners and contributors involved in these workshops included the National Health Service (NHS), and a doctor was presenting at one of them. It is, therefore, understandable why the issue would be referred to as mental health, as some of the medical profession do not recognise stress, while a condition such as depression or bi-polar disorder can be classified easily.
The facts were interesting: at any one time one worker in sixis affected by a mental health condition such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder or problems related to stress. This statistic rises if alcohol or drugs are involved, to one worker in five.
Interestingly, mental health issues can affect anyone in industry; the majority of people of working age who have a mental health condition are in work of some kind.
Some of the statistics for the UK are startling. Businesses are losing over £1,000 for every employee because of mental health in the workforce. Employees in the UK are taking 70 million sick days a year due to a mental health condition such as depression, anxiety or stress. This all gives an estimated cost to UK employers of £25.9 billion per year. (MND Taking Care of Business Campaign, Sainsbury Centre Policy Paper 8).
An interesting talk was given by an occupational therapist aimed at busting myths about mental health at work. Here are some of them:
People with severe mental health conditions are not able to work. Not necessarily; just because someone is diagnosed with a mental health condition such as schizophrenia, it does not mean they cannot work or are unable to work. The vast number of people who have experienced a mental health condition either return to work or continue to work.
Work makes mental health problems worse. Again, not necessarily. It has been shown that long periods out of work can actually lead to deterioration in health and well-being. Work is therefore good for health and beneficial to well-being. These benefits apply equally to those who have mental health problems and those with other severe problems too. However, this does depend on workplace conditions, which is why employers and managers need to be aware of how to make the workplace conducive to positive mental well-being.
Employing someone with a mental health condition will be difficult or impossible. Research suggests the opposite. It has been found that 85 per cent of employers who took on staff with a mental health condition did not regret doing so (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2008).
As the statistics say, one in five people have a condition; so every employer is probably already employing such a person and may not even be aware of it.
Someone who states that they have previously had a mental health condition will have a bad sickness absence record in the future. People who experience mental health conditions may need to take time off work, many are able to continue without time off, or return after a period of ill health. People can, and do, recover from mental health conditions and although some experience conditions over a long period of time, the vast majority of people experience only a single episode and recover completely.
This is as true of schizophrenia as it is of depression. Over 70 per cent of people who experience a mental health problem recover fully.
It was interesting to hear the discussion following this particular myth. It was suggested that if an employee broke their leg, they could possibly spend more time off work than an employee with a mental health condition. The difference would be that a broken leg is a tangible injury and receives sympathy, while a condition such as depression, bi-polar disorder, schizophrenia or serious stress is intangible and does not always receive the same amount of sympathy and understanding from work colleagues and managers.
The workshops became an opportunity for managers and employers to discuss staffing issues they are dealing with at work and also to hear ideas to introduce into the workplace, which could be utilised to ensure staff are given the opportunity to discuss their problems in a stress-free environment without being judged.
I will discuss some of the ideas and more myth-busters next week.
kathryn@maltanet.net