This year’s World Mental Health Day, which was created to promote vital conversations surrounding mental health in the workplace, focuses on this area, which has gained more attention over recent years.
The return on investment from workplace mental health is significant – five to eight time the initial investment. This comes as a result of increased engagement, decreased absenteeism and greater productivity.
Many businesses still view mental health as an extravagance, something they should have if they are able to afford it rather than a necessary component of the puzzle.
Nathan Shearman is the director of training and therapy at Red Umbrella. He warns businesses to change this mentality as a priority in order to combat the rising employee mental health crisis.
Prioritising mental health in a culture
Shearman says that “committing to create a positive mental health culture in a meaningful and genuine way is a good starting point.”
Business leaders will not see benefits from investing in Mental Health First Aid Training or an EAP.
Start by assessing where you are in your journey and the support systems that you have already put in place. Are they effective? What could be missing? What is the mood of your staff?
It is important to appoint mental health first aiders, but it’s also crucial that they are supported and allowed to play an active role.
It’s important to keep in mind that there is no such thing as a “one-size-fits all” approach. Every business is unique, with different teams and working styles. A personalised solution, therefore, is essential.
What are some of the major barriers?
The main problem is that we do not equate mental support with productivity except in a negatively skewed way.
We think of the number of days lost due to mental illness, but not about how we can improve staff retention, recruitment, and productivity by safeguarding mental wellbeing.
“Another obstacle is the fact that the need for the business gets in the way of improving our mental-health culture. Mental health suffers when working in high-pressure environments or having to meet multiple deadlines.
Ironically, putting in place support makes it easier to handle high-pressure environments or targets.
Many businesses don’t have the resources necessary to offer a variety of support within an organization. A strong partnership with an EAP or a training provider will ease the burden and make it easier to implement mental health practices.
What role do individuals and teams play in a team?
“Culture can be shaped by the top-down, but it is built from the bottom up. The vision of what the culture should look like is set by the CEO and directors, but the actions taken by employees throughout the organization will make that vision a reality.
It is important to create a culture of positive mental health by taking a holistic approach.
The person at the bottom of the ladder has the same responsibility as the CEO for mental health, so it is important that all employees are on the same page on this crucial issue.
Focusing on long-term structural, sustainable change
“Creating a culture of positive mental health doesn’t happen over night. It’s important to have a vision for what your culture should be. Do you want employees to be able to voice their concerns if they are struggling? You want to provide enough support for your staff. You want your staff to feel valued and cared for.
“We may feel the answers are obvious but we must value mental health enough to put in effort to improve it.
“Rely on key players within your organization who have the greatest connections with other employees, departments, and teams.
This is the group that should be trained on mental health first-aid, because they have the most influence in an organization. It could be for managers to teach them how to bring up the topic with their team, or HR staff to show them how to handle a crisis.
“And in general – it’s important that mental health culture be seen as something that needs to be cared for periodically and not just once.” It needs to be watered and tended like a garden.
The original version of this article, World Mental Health Day – How Can We Integrate Mental Health into Corporate DNA? appeared first on HR news.
