Head Of Training, The Healthy Work Company

October 25, 2017

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World Mental Health Day

Mental health: Whose role is it anyway?

Following World Mental Health Day, SHP has been exploring mental health in the workplace; looking at young vulnerable workers, the differences between men and women, and mental health in SMEs. Here we consider who the responsibility of mental health sits with, how HR, OSH, Occupational health and other departments fit around the topic, and whether employees understand enough about where they should go in a mental health crisis.

Health and safety professionals’ roles have changed and diversified hugely over the last decade. Where many used to incorporate environment into their role, we now also see wellbeing, security, fire and quality often added too.

63% of health and safety professionals have mental health as part of their remit and a further 21% contribute to policy

With the HSE’s huge push on health over the last few years, and what seems like a profession-wide realisation over the disproportionate numbers of people dying from work-related health conditions vs accidents, and the  disproportionate numbers of people dying from suicide in construction vs falls from height, it’s time we as OSH professionals really understand where our roles begin and end in mental health.

For example, if someone is suffering from work-related stress and they need to speak to someone about their doctor signing them off, and a phased return to work – is that for HR to take responsibility over? If someone says they are feeling suicidal while at work should they be signposted towards the wellbeing team (if one exists), and if someone wants to discuss how their workload is affecting their existing mental health condition, is that a matter for an OSH manager?

As health and safety professionals, managers and employers we have a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work Act, and under the Equality Act we must ensure that no one faces discrimination. But putting the law to one side for a moment, day-to-day, how do different departments deal with mental health at work?

I feel it’s important that employees know that there is a safe, confidential place to speak about any mental health issues they may have – Gareth Richardson, Occupational Health Professional

Occupational health

The size and resources a company has may directly reflect on its occupational health capacity. Occupational health teams exist to manage health both physically and mentally, from workplace immunisations, to health surveillance, to managing absence and presenteeism, and to also promote wellbeing – including that surrounding mental health.

Gareth Richardson, an occupational health technician at Fusion Occupational Health said: “Occupational health can provide a safe place for employees to come and talk to a specialist and offer ongoing support in and out of work.

“Personally, I feel it’s important that employees know that there is a safe, confidential place to speak about any mental health issues they may have. Some people don’t like to speak about their issues face to face so allow options like a specialist that can be contacted via phone or email.”

Asked what he would recommend OH professionals do to better support themselves in being able to help someone with a mental health condition, Gareth said: “(OH professionals need) to have a wide amount of knowledge around mental health. Take part in ongoing training and make use of the resources available from some of the top mental health awareness companies.”

Employee Assistance Programmes

An employee assistance program (EAP) is an employee benefit programme that assists employees with issues that may impact their performance at work, health, mental and emotional wellbeing. The process often offers assessments and consultations, with referrals and follow-up services where needed.

Larger companies that invest in EAPs may see results in reduced turnover and absenteeism, and higher employee productivity.

According to an article recently published in HR magazine, EAPs are one of a number of ways for employers to reduce the cost of mental health absence and help their employees.

Among the steps that employers can take to reduce the effect of mental health issues on their employees, the article reports line manager training to identify mental health issues among employees, initiatives to tackle stigma such as wellbeing champions and making reasonable adjustments to enable an employee to remain in work, as options for employers to consider.

Neil Mountford, chair of the UK Employee Assistance Professionals Association, said: “Employee assistance programmes (EAPs), can offer a number of counselling sessions as well as support for specific issues such as debt and money worries, as well as personal issues that may be contributing to stress in the workplace. Communication is one of the key factors to ensuring that EAPs, as well as the other steps outlined in the article, are effective in reducing the impact of mental health in the workplace and when introduced as part of a wider wellbeing and engagement strategy can have a positive impact on organisations and employees.”


Further reading

Mental Health: The next major focus for health and safety professionals?

How should SMEs manage mental health at work?


Occupational Safety and Health

A recent survey shows that 63% of health and safety professionals have mental health as part of their remit and a further 21% contribute to policy.

In occupational safety and health the figures certainly add up for the profession to take note and know that more needs to be done.

There are 70 million sick days a year directly attributable to mental health issues and the HSE stated that in 2015  “stress” accounted for 35% of all ill health cases that year. Additionally, there is the problem of presenteeism – coming to work when you are not really well because the culture demands it. The Centre for Mental Health in 2010 estimated that this accounts for 1.5 times more lost productivity than absences.

So where does this sit with Health and Safety Managers, Directors and those they have to communicate to? A recent survey shows that 63% of health and safety professionals have mental health as part of their remit and a further 21% contribute to policy.

From a moral point of view health and safety professionals need to help keep their workforces safe and healthy, both physically and mentally. From a business perspective they need to help create and maintain productive, engaged workforces.

In her article of earlier this year for SHP, Heather Beach asked if mental health is the next major focus for health and safety professionals. She said: “So where does mental health sit? With HR, who will certainly deal with the fallout when things go wrong? With senior management generally? With health and safety? The answer is all of the above of course, but there is a real opportunity for health and safety to show leadership here, in an area which is not compliance focused but definitely has a business benefit argument and of course ticks the ethics boxes.”

Asked how we address this she said: “It seems to me that lots of experiments and initiatives are starting to take place – many of them led by health and safety. We should be at a stage where we can develop programmes which a) outline the problem at an organisational level b) create a plan to address it c) embed the learning and processes. Treat health like safety? Just like safety, it needs to be embraced at a leadership level to create a truly healthy, thriving culture. First and foremost, leaders need to look to themselves, as always, and examine and understand their own attitudes and where those come from.

It’s extremely important for people to have a safe, non-judgemental place to go to speak about their mental health issues – Franco Trapenese, HR professional

Human Resources

HR professionals have a large part to play in some of the issues surrounding mental health support, return to work procedures and discrimination issues. However, is it their role to also be a shoulder to cry on? Should HR professionals be trained in understanding more about the most common mental health issues?

Franco Trapenese (FCIPD), Global Head of HR and Talent Management at Salmon, said “HR play a pivotal role in supporting people with mental health issues and also have a duty of care to its employees.

“It’s extremely important for people to have a safe, non-judgemental place to go to speak about their mental health issues. People also need to promote the removal of mental health stigma. As well as EAP, HR get involved at the early signs to try and support an individual.”

Asked what he would recommend HR professionals do to better support themselves in being able to help someone with a mental health condition, Franco said: “I have learnt a lot since attending a Mental Health First Aid Course and have since signed up my two HR advisors to also attend. Over time I may get our H&S Manager and other first aiders to undergo the shorter awareness course.”

Line Managers

The HSE recommends that as soon as a manager notices that an employee is having mental health difficulties, they should talk to them – as early action can help prevent them becoming more unwell.

If the person does not want to speak, managers should suggest they speak to someone else, for example someone from the employee assistance programme, occupational health team or their GP.

Line managers should concentrate on making reasonable adjustments at work, rather than understanding the diagnosis. Their GP, medical support or occupational health should be able to provide guidance on what managers can do to help them.

If an employee goes off sick, lack of contact or involvement from their manager may mean they feel isolated, forgotten or unable to return. Managers can reduce the risk of them not returning to work by:

• keeping them informed about what is going on, including social events
• reassuring them early on and throughout their absence

Additional advice for line managers is available here.

Mental Health First Aiders

MHFA like physical first aid, does what it says on the tin. A mental health first aider will learn how to spot the signs of an early mental health issue, know how to communicate with someone experiencing a mental health issue, preserve life where a person may be about to harm themselves, help stop mental ill health from getting worse, promotes good recovery of mental health, and guide people to the right sources of further help and support.

Some large companies, construction projects and organisations are now making sure they have MHFA on site at all times, and that people are aware that these people are approachable for help and support, or in the event of a mental health crisis.

Conclusion

I don’t think it will come as a surprise to say that mental health is all of our responsibility. At the most simple level it is for all of us to be kind, considerate and ask people: “Are you OK?”. As wider teams our roles lend themselves to the various stages of mental ill health and to mental wellbeing. As teams of occupational health, HR, and OSH professionals, we need to make sure we are talking to each other, making sure that as whole organisations we are doing our best to support the mental wellbeing of our staff.

What makes us susceptible to burnout?

In this episode  of the Safety & Health Podcast, ‘Burnout, stress and being human’, Heather Beach is joined by Stacy Thomson to discuss burnout, perfectionism and how to deal with burnout as an individual, as management and as an organisation.

We provide an insight on how to tackle burnout and why mental health is such a taboo subject, particularly in the workplace.

stress

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Anon
Anon
7 years ago

As you mention the safety professional is taking on environmental, wellbeing, security, fire and quality as well as mental health responsibility and so it is not surprising a number of my colleagues or looking to quit the profession. Who looks out for the overworked safety guy?