Healix Health is a leading healthcare trust. They have revealed that mental-health related support requests increased by 10% during the weeks that followed Mental Health Awareness Weeks 2023 and 2024. This shows that such campaigns are effective in driving engagement.
It warns employers to not let the momentum fade and that year-round support will be vital.
The data, based on thousands employee interactions with Mindright – a digital triage and wellbeing platform used by Healix member companies – shows a temporary increase in help seeking behaviours. There was an increase in inquiries relating to burnout, stress and counselling. By June, the levels had returned to baseline.
The study also revealed that Blue Monday has seen a 30% rise in inquiries over the past two years compared with other days in January.
Ian Talbot said that Healix Health CEO Ian Talbot:
Our data indicates that mental health awareness campaigns such as Blue Monday and Mental Health Awareness Week have a positive impact on employees’ willingness to seek help.
“But there is a pattern that we see repeatedly: After a brief surge of interest, the activity begins to taper off. Mental health doesn’t change with the seasons. Employers must match short-term awareness to long-term actions.”
Health and Safety Executive found that depression, anxiety and stress accounted for the majority of days lost due work-related illness in 2023/2024. They lost 16.4 million working days. Mental Health UK’s Burnout Report also revealed that nine out of ten people had experienced extreme or high levels of stress within the past year.
Ian continued:
To ensure that people have access to mental support throughout the year, businesses should embed mental health into their daily operations through manager training, internal campaigns and 24/7 access to mental services.
A coordinated strategy allows employers to avoid problems, intervene early and support recovery, in a way that benefits both the employee and organisation.
The original version of this article, Mental Health Support queries increase 10% after awareness week but Healix says that year-round support must be provided. This first appeared on HR news.
