The business case for mental health awareness is evidenced by the increasing numbers of employers who are commissioning mental health awareness trainings for their workforce. Employers want trainings which enable their staff to understand more about common mental health conditions. Understanding mental health means that staff can work better with clients and customers. It also allows staff to feel less isolated about personal issues around health and well-being.
Mental health awareness provides the opportunity for employers and employees to find out more about the law as it relates to employment and mental health.
Enlightened employers will seek to develop a workforce team which is happy rather than unhappy, fulfilled rather than excluded. Courses such as MHFA (Mental Health First Aid) show that attendees often feel that one of the benefits of the training in that it allows for a safe space. A safe space where individuals can share feelings about their personal well-being in addition to learning about the broader aspects of mental health conditions and the appropriate interventions.
In addition to mental health, it makes solid sense for businesses to incorporate awareness of social inclusion and mainstream. Returning to or accessing mainstream living is now a key part of the care pathway for those diagnosed with 'severe and enduring' mental health diagnoses. It is equally important for people who may be experiencing conditions such as anxiety, phobia or stress at work.
Both groups - those in primary and secondary care - are being signposted to mainstream life rather than to special settings as a central plank of the recovery process. The implications for any service provider - and that includes businesses - are crucial. Businesses and services are at the receiving end of mainstream.
Clients in recovery are choosing to access their personal goals through a diverse range of outlets. These could range from faith venues to volunteer bureaus, from retail outlets to sports centres, from recording studios to adult education colleges, from libraries to personal counselors, from training venues to department stores.
For businesses, it's not just one in four of their staff who may be experiencing mental health challenges, it's also one in four of their clients, customers and service consumers. Mental health challenges will also have an impact on one in three families. Disclosed or undisclosed, it's clear that mental health and well-being lie at the heart of our transactions and interactions.
Wednesday 30 June 2010
Tuesday 29 June 2010
The Business Case for Mental Health Awareness
The Business Case for Mental Health Awareness. The economic and social cost of mental health problems in the United Kingdom is well documented. In 2002/03 the economic and social cost of mental health problems in England was £77 billion. (SCMH, 2003). The economic and social cost of mental health problems is greater than that of crime and larger than the total amount spent on all NHS and social services in the UK (HM Treasury, 2005).
Dame Carol Black's 2008 report 'Working for a Healthier Tomorrow' was a major attempt to address these concerns. Legislative review such as the 2005 amendments to the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) highlighted the need to address the massive economic and social attrition behind issues of mental ill-health. In 2005 the Confederation of British Industry was concerned enough to commission its own research. Stress, anxiety and depression accounted for a third of the 168 million working days lost in the UK for health and related reasons in 2004, translating to a cost of sickness absence of about £4.1 billion (Confederation of British Industry, 2005).
As a result of legislation, employees have more rights and employers more responsibilities relating to the incidence of mental health in the workplace. Employees who choose to disclose a mental health condition to their employers are strongly protected by legislation and have the right to 'reasonable adjustments' that they may request their employers to make. In practice, it is still true that people with mental health diagnoses may well feel little confidence in this legislation. Nonetheless, their rights are enshrined in law. Similarly, employers have a legal responsibility not to discriminate against employees who have disclosed a mental health condition and to make any reasonable adjustments that have been requested.
Dame Carol Black's 2008 report 'Working for a Healthier Tomorrow' was a major attempt to address these concerns. Legislative review such as the 2005 amendments to the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) highlighted the need to address the massive economic and social attrition behind issues of mental ill-health. In 2005 the Confederation of British Industry was concerned enough to commission its own research. Stress, anxiety and depression accounted for a third of the 168 million working days lost in the UK for health and related reasons in 2004, translating to a cost of sickness absence of about £4.1 billion (Confederation of British Industry, 2005).
As a result of legislation, employees have more rights and employers more responsibilities relating to the incidence of mental health in the workplace. Employees who choose to disclose a mental health condition to their employers are strongly protected by legislation and have the right to 'reasonable adjustments' that they may request their employers to make. In practice, it is still true that people with mental health diagnoses may well feel little confidence in this legislation. Nonetheless, their rights are enshrined in law. Similarly, employers have a legal responsibility not to discriminate against employees who have disclosed a mental health condition and to make any reasonable adjustments that have been requested.
Employers getting down with mental health
Helping employers to understand issues around mental health is fast becoming a key component of approaches to productivity, staff happiness, improved services and profits.
It is employers, managers and directors who are taking the lead on many of the new initiatives around mental health.
Supported by business ‘dragon’ Duncan Bannatyne, Mind’s ‘Taking care of Business’ campaign highlights the initiatives being taken by employers around issues of mental health at work.
The Mind campaign underlines the message that the promotion of good mental health helps employers ‘increase productivity, improve staff performance and save thousands of pounds’.
Mind also hosts a series of follow-up programmes designed to actively encourage good mental health in the workplace.
Some of the companies who have signed up to support the Mind campaign include EDF energy, BT, Hewitt Consultancy, AXA and police and security services. James Kenrick at Hewitt Associates helped set up an Employee Assistance programme allowing staff access to counselling services where appropriate.
Hewitt also initiated a staff health audit which identified stress, anxiety and depression as ‘real issues within the organisation’. James Kenrick states that:
‘after the health audit we sourced a stress vocational rehabilitation service, which has a vocational focus and is staffed by psychologists. Employees who have been absent for 10 days or more are referred for an initial assessment, and recommended the most appropriate treatment plan. We have found that this service, along with early intervention, has greatly reduced the days lost through stress-related absence and stopped stress-related disability altogether’.
Proactive management of mental health in the workplace has allowed Hewitt Associates to save ‘nearly £400’ per employee. More importantly, as Kenrick states:
‘it's the intangible elements that are most rewarding. The feedback from staff who have been helped to recover from difficult circumstances has been exceptional’.
EDF Energy is a major electricity provider. A workplace audit showed that the company was losing around £1.4m in productivity each year as a result of mental ill health among its employees. As part of an Employee Support Programme the company offered psychological support (cognitive behavioural therapy) to employees and trained over 1,000 managers to recognise psychological ill health among staff and to minimise its effects. This resulted in an improvement in productivity which saved the organisation approximately £228,000 per year. Job satisfaction also rose from 36 to 68%
(Business in the Community, 2009).
It is employers, managers and directors who are taking the lead on many of the new initiatives around mental health.
Supported by business ‘dragon’ Duncan Bannatyne, Mind’s ‘Taking care of Business’ campaign highlights the initiatives being taken by employers around issues of mental health at work.
The Mind campaign underlines the message that the promotion of good mental health helps employers ‘increase productivity, improve staff performance and save thousands of pounds’.
Mind also hosts a series of follow-up programmes designed to actively encourage good mental health in the workplace.
Some of the companies who have signed up to support the Mind campaign include EDF energy, BT, Hewitt Consultancy, AXA and police and security services. James Kenrick at Hewitt Associates helped set up an Employee Assistance programme allowing staff access to counselling services where appropriate.
Hewitt also initiated a staff health audit which identified stress, anxiety and depression as ‘real issues within the organisation’. James Kenrick states that:
‘after the health audit we sourced a stress vocational rehabilitation service, which has a vocational focus and is staffed by psychologists. Employees who have been absent for 10 days or more are referred for an initial assessment, and recommended the most appropriate treatment plan. We have found that this service, along with early intervention, has greatly reduced the days lost through stress-related absence and stopped stress-related disability altogether’.
Proactive management of mental health in the workplace has allowed Hewitt Associates to save ‘nearly £400’ per employee. More importantly, as Kenrick states:
‘it's the intangible elements that are most rewarding. The feedback from staff who have been helped to recover from difficult circumstances has been exceptional’.
EDF Energy is a major electricity provider. A workplace audit showed that the company was losing around £1.4m in productivity each year as a result of mental ill health among its employees. As part of an Employee Support Programme the company offered psychological support (cognitive behavioural therapy) to employees and trained over 1,000 managers to recognise psychological ill health among staff and to minimise its effects. This resulted in an improvement in productivity which saved the organisation approximately £228,000 per year. Job satisfaction also rose from 36 to 68%
(Business in the Community, 2009).
Thursday 24 June 2010
Happiness and Profits
Helping employers to understand issues around mental health is fast becoming a key component of approaches to productivity, staff happiness, improved services and profits.
It is employers, managers and directors who are taking the lead on many of the new initiatives around mental health.
Supported by business ‘dragon’ Duncan Bannatyne, Mind’s ‘Taking care of Business’ campaign highlights the initiatives being taken by many employers around issues of mental health at work.
The Mind campaign underlines the message that the promotion of good mental health helps employers ‘increase productivity, improve staff performance and save thousands of pounds’.
Mind also hosts a series of follow-up programmes designed to actively encourage good mental health in the workplace.
Some of the companies who have signed up to support the Mind campaign include EDF energy, BT, Hewitt Consultancy, AXA and police and security services. James Kenrick at Hewitt Associates helped set up an Employee Assistance programme allowing staff access to counselling services where appropriate.
Hewitt also initiated a staff health audit which identified stress, anxiety and depression as ‘real issues within the organisation’. James Kenrick states that:
‘after the health audit we sourced a stress vocational rehabilitation service, which has a vocational focus and is staffed by psychologists. Employees who have been absent for 10 days or more are referred for an initial assessment, and recommended the most appropriate treatment plan. We have found that this service, along with early intervention, has greatly reduced the days lost through stress-related absence and stopped stress-related disability altogether’.
Proactive management of mental health in the workplace has allowed Hewitt Associates to save ‘nearly £400’ per employee. More importantly, as Kenrick states:
‘it's the intangible elements that are most rewarding. The feedback from staff who have been helped to recover from difficult circumstances has been exceptional’.
EDF Energy is a major electricity provider. A workplace audit showed that the company was losing around £1.4m in productivity each year as a result of mental ill health among its employees. As part of an Employee Support Programme the company offered psychological support (cognitive behavioural therapy) to employees and trained over 1,000 managers to recognise psychological ill health among staff and to minimise its effects. This resulted in an improvement in productivity which saved the organisation approximately £228,000 per year. Job satisfaction also rose from 36 to 68%
(Business in the Community, 2009).
It is employers, managers and directors who are taking the lead on many of the new initiatives around mental health.
Supported by business ‘dragon’ Duncan Bannatyne, Mind’s ‘Taking care of Business’ campaign highlights the initiatives being taken by many employers around issues of mental health at work.
The Mind campaign underlines the message that the promotion of good mental health helps employers ‘increase productivity, improve staff performance and save thousands of pounds’.
Mind also hosts a series of follow-up programmes designed to actively encourage good mental health in the workplace.
Some of the companies who have signed up to support the Mind campaign include EDF energy, BT, Hewitt Consultancy, AXA and police and security services. James Kenrick at Hewitt Associates helped set up an Employee Assistance programme allowing staff access to counselling services where appropriate.
Hewitt also initiated a staff health audit which identified stress, anxiety and depression as ‘real issues within the organisation’. James Kenrick states that:
‘after the health audit we sourced a stress vocational rehabilitation service, which has a vocational focus and is staffed by psychologists. Employees who have been absent for 10 days or more are referred for an initial assessment, and recommended the most appropriate treatment plan. We have found that this service, along with early intervention, has greatly reduced the days lost through stress-related absence and stopped stress-related disability altogether’.
Proactive management of mental health in the workplace has allowed Hewitt Associates to save ‘nearly £400’ per employee. More importantly, as Kenrick states:
‘it's the intangible elements that are most rewarding. The feedback from staff who have been helped to recover from difficult circumstances has been exceptional’.
EDF Energy is a major electricity provider. A workplace audit showed that the company was losing around £1.4m in productivity each year as a result of mental ill health among its employees. As part of an Employee Support Programme the company offered psychological support (cognitive behavioural therapy) to employees and trained over 1,000 managers to recognise psychological ill health among staff and to minimise its effects. This resulted in an improvement in productivity which saved the organisation approximately £228,000 per year. Job satisfaction also rose from 36 to 68%
(Business in the Community, 2009).
Friday 18 June 2010
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Monday 14 June 2010
Planning for Good Mental Health & Social Inclusion - testimonials
Planning for Good Mental Health & Social Inclusion
Training testimonials from NHS and Primary Care attendees
'Such a huge subject - well covered in the time allotted'.
The course has enabled me to be 'more assertive in recognising and prioritising mental health issues'. I shall 'develop a knowledge base of local services and encourage others to make appropriate referrals'.
'John is a very calm person. Used the background music to create a non-threatening, relaxed atmosphere'.
I shall 'explore in greater depths what services are available to individual clients'.
'I feel I am more aware of what to look for in myself and others'.
The course 'has made me more aware of the need to ensure people return to mainstream after illness'.
'Ideas and information given to think outside the box'.
The course reinforced 'the importance of mainstream social inclusion'.
I now have 'more awareness of organisations and can utilise the social inclusion 'web' tool in assessments.'
Training testimonials from NHS and Primary Care attendees
'Such a huge subject - well covered in the time allotted'.
The course has enabled me to be 'more assertive in recognising and prioritising mental health issues'. I shall 'develop a knowledge base of local services and encourage others to make appropriate referrals'.
'John is a very calm person. Used the background music to create a non-threatening, relaxed atmosphere'.
I shall 'explore in greater depths what services are available to individual clients'.
'I feel I am more aware of what to look for in myself and others'.
The course 'has made me more aware of the need to ensure people return to mainstream after illness'.
'Ideas and information given to think outside the box'.
The course reinforced 'the importance of mainstream social inclusion'.
I now have 'more awareness of organisations and can utilise the social inclusion 'web' tool in assessments.'
Write a Freeindex Review
If you have attended a recent training, please feel free to review me.
Freeindex listing:
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View our full profile in the FreeIndex Personal Development Directory directory.
Traditional cohorts in mental health
Service providers, staff, service users and carers are often perceived as the main groups comprising the traditional cohort of secondary mental health care provision. All this changes when mainstream practice is incorporated into care pathways.
The effect of mainstreaming is that it introduces new stakeholders into the equation. Stakeholders chosen by the client as part of his or her recovery. Person-centred practice is designed to enable the person in recovery to access activities and outlets of their own choice in the mainstream environment. These outlets can be anywhere and everywhere, depending on the client's personal goals, hopes and aspirations.
Mainstream effectively destroys the stigma attached to recovery as it is longer attached to special settings, wherever this is the individual's preferred choice.
The effect of mainstreaming is that it introduces new stakeholders into the equation. Stakeholders chosen by the client as part of his or her recovery. Person-centred practice is designed to enable the person in recovery to access activities and outlets of their own choice in the mainstream environment. These outlets can be anywhere and everywhere, depending on the client's personal goals, hopes and aspirations.
Mainstream effectively destroys the stigma attached to recovery as it is longer attached to special settings, wherever this is the individual's preferred choice.
Wednesday 9 June 2010
Mind and Mental Health in the Workplace
Mental Health organisation Mind is getting behind mental health in the workplace and has come up with an impressive campaign 'Taking Care of Business'.
Mind Workplace also provides consultancy and training for employers on mental health, enhancing productivity by improving business practices.
'Mind Workplace will enable your company to assess how mentally healthy it is for both employees and clients and support you to make any necessary changes to ensure you are managing mental health in a way that will maximise your company's potential.
We believe in a preventative approach to mental health problems in the workplace. This involves promoting mental health awareness, reducing stigma around seeking help, helping staff develop resilience, effective sickness management and emotionally intelligent management supervision.
Building on existing good practice such as employee assistance programmes and occupational health support, Mind Workplace will help you to develop a proactive and systematic approach to promoting good mental health in the workplace.
If you would like to contact us to find out how you can improve the mental health of your business then call us on 020 8215 2365 or fill out our contact form.
Why does your company need Mind Workplace?
In the past five years, employers have cited stress as the number one reason given by employees who take time off work.
Staff absence and lost productivity due to poor mental health management have an overall annual cost to employers of nearly £26 billion [1].
Healthy and happy workplaces result in reduced absence, increased productivity and greater customer satisfaction, leading to higher profit margins.
One in four people experience mental health problems in any five year period - therefore a significant proportion of your business's employees and customers will be experiencing mental health problems at the moment.
People with mental health problems are often overlooked by interventions aimed at improving accessibility of business services to people with physical disabilities.
Most firms vastly underestimate the problem but they could make big savings with a few simple steps.
What next?
Contact us today using this form or on 020 8215 2365 to arrange a meeting'.
(From the Mind website)
Mind Workplace also provides consultancy and training for employers on mental health, enhancing productivity by improving business practices.
'Mind Workplace will enable your company to assess how mentally healthy it is for both employees and clients and support you to make any necessary changes to ensure you are managing mental health in a way that will maximise your company's potential.
We believe in a preventative approach to mental health problems in the workplace. This involves promoting mental health awareness, reducing stigma around seeking help, helping staff develop resilience, effective sickness management and emotionally intelligent management supervision.
Building on existing good practice such as employee assistance programmes and occupational health support, Mind Workplace will help you to develop a proactive and systematic approach to promoting good mental health in the workplace.
If you would like to contact us to find out how you can improve the mental health of your business then call us on 020 8215 2365 or fill out our contact form.
Why does your company need Mind Workplace?
In the past five years, employers have cited stress as the number one reason given by employees who take time off work.
Staff absence and lost productivity due to poor mental health management have an overall annual cost to employers of nearly £26 billion [1].
Healthy and happy workplaces result in reduced absence, increased productivity and greater customer satisfaction, leading to higher profit margins.
One in four people experience mental health problems in any five year period - therefore a significant proportion of your business's employees and customers will be experiencing mental health problems at the moment.
People with mental health problems are often overlooked by interventions aimed at improving accessibility of business services to people with physical disabilities.
Most firms vastly underestimate the problem but they could make big savings with a few simple steps.
What next?
Contact us today using this form or on 020 8215 2365 to arrange a meeting'.
(From the Mind website)
Friday 4 June 2010
'Taking Care of Business' Mind campaign
Mind’s ‘Taking care of Business’ campaign highlights the initiatives being taken by many employers around issues of mental health at work.
Supported by business ‘dragon’ Duncan Bannatyne, the campaign shows that employers are becoming aware of the need to address and support good mental health in the workplace.
The Mind campaign underlines the message that the promotion of good mental health helps employers ‘increase productivity, improve staff performance and save thousands of pounds’.
Mind also hosts a series of follow-up programmes designed to actively encourage good mental health in the workplace.
Some of the companies who have signed up to support the Mind campaign include EDF energy, BT, Hewitt Consultancy, AXA and police and security services. James Kenrick at Hewitt Associates helped set up an Employee Assistance programme allowing staff access to counselling services where appropriate.
Hewitt also initiated a staff health audit which identified stress, anxiety and depression as ‘real issues within the organisation’. James Kenrick states that:
‘after the health audit we sourced a stress vocational rehabilitation service, which has a vocational focus and is staffed by psychologists. Employees who have been absent for 10 days or more are referred for an initial assessment, and recommended the most appropriate treatment plan. We have found that this service, along with early intervention, has greatly reduced the days lost through stress-related absence and stopped stress-related disability altogether’.
Proactive management of mental health in the workplace has allowed Hewitt Associates to save ‘nearly £400’ per employee. More importantly, as Kenrick states:
‘it's the intangible elements that are most rewarding. The feedback from staff who have been helped to recover from difficult circumstances has been exceptional’.
EDF Energy is a major electricity provider. A workplace audit showed that the company was losing around £1.4m in productivity each year as a result of mental ill health among its employees. As part of an Employee Support Programme the company offered psychological support (cognitive behavioural therapy) to employees and trained over 1,000 managers to recognise psychological ill health among staff and to minimise its effects. This resulted in an improvement in productivity which saved the organisation approximately £228,000 per year. Job satisfaction also rose from 36 to 68% (Business in the Community, 2009).
Supported by business ‘dragon’ Duncan Bannatyne, the campaign shows that employers are becoming aware of the need to address and support good mental health in the workplace.
The Mind campaign underlines the message that the promotion of good mental health helps employers ‘increase productivity, improve staff performance and save thousands of pounds’.
Mind also hosts a series of follow-up programmes designed to actively encourage good mental health in the workplace.
Some of the companies who have signed up to support the Mind campaign include EDF energy, BT, Hewitt Consultancy, AXA and police and security services. James Kenrick at Hewitt Associates helped set up an Employee Assistance programme allowing staff access to counselling services where appropriate.
Hewitt also initiated a staff health audit which identified stress, anxiety and depression as ‘real issues within the organisation’. James Kenrick states that:
‘after the health audit we sourced a stress vocational rehabilitation service, which has a vocational focus and is staffed by psychologists. Employees who have been absent for 10 days or more are referred for an initial assessment, and recommended the most appropriate treatment plan. We have found that this service, along with early intervention, has greatly reduced the days lost through stress-related absence and stopped stress-related disability altogether’.
Proactive management of mental health in the workplace has allowed Hewitt Associates to save ‘nearly £400’ per employee. More importantly, as Kenrick states:
‘it's the intangible elements that are most rewarding. The feedback from staff who have been helped to recover from difficult circumstances has been exceptional’.
EDF Energy is a major electricity provider. A workplace audit showed that the company was losing around £1.4m in productivity each year as a result of mental ill health among its employees. As part of an Employee Support Programme the company offered psychological support (cognitive behavioural therapy) to employees and trained over 1,000 managers to recognise psychological ill health among staff and to minimise its effects. This resulted in an improvement in productivity which saved the organisation approximately £228,000 per year. Job satisfaction also rose from 36 to 68% (Business in the Community, 2009).
Wednesday 2 June 2010
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