Mental Health is the weak link in most company’s health & safety programs, it is really a Silent Epidemic surrounded by stigma.
Mental health issues are often buried in the workplace says Dr. Bill Pomfret, Managing consultant of Safety Projects International Inc. who is trying to uncover them, at a recent conference he asked over 400 delegates, how many had a system in place for managing mental health, it was pitiful, with only a few hands being raised.
Pomfret has decided to design and develop a series of tools to help employers implement a mental health management system, his first project was to design and develop a “Mental Health Audit & Evaluation System” followed by a series of workshops designed for a) workers, b) management and supervision, and c) OH&S, EAP and HR professionals, d) oh&s committee members etc. these will be followed by voluntary a policy procedures manual and supported by questionnaires and interview questions about workers mental well-being.
Mental health of workers working with high job stress is an important social issue in Canada as in many other countries, the statistics are staggering, there has been a long standing stigma associated with mental Illness which Pomfret will address and illustrate that it is simply another illness.
Every day over 500,000 Canadians are off work due to mental health, over 200 Canadians a day will attempt suicide, one in three of employees will be diagnosed with a mental illness and most mental illnesses will result in difficulties with productivity due to concentration, attention, judgement, communication and organization skills.
The costs to Canadian businesses was over $21 billion dollars every year spread across the Canadian economy. This is mostly in lost production through staff being off work or underperforming at work.
Awareness is growing as is the job stress and long working hours which often lead to depression, cardiovascular diseases and absenteeism among workers. Mental health programs dealing with workers suffering from stress-related health disorders have become a challenging task for employers and workers in almost every industry in Canada. Reflecting the generally serious effects of excessive work and job stress in globalizing economy.
The number of cases recognized as occupational diseases or accidents exceeds 300 or more cases a year. In recent years, there has been a sharp increase in the incidence of mental illnesses and suicides caused by psychosocial risks at work, and similarly over 300 or more cases a year have been recognized as occupational diseases or accidents.
There is very little data on mental health issues in most industries, but Pomfret suspects mental health issues affect both men and women the same way it does everyone else.
Pomfret believes his mental health management system “will allow companies to have a sense of the prevalence and the incidents of mental health and wellbeing-related issues,”
My clients report that about a quarter of disability claims are related to mental health but it’s unclear why at this stage, but after a full audit and evaluation, Pomfret believes that “client companies will actually get in and understand what goes on in the minds of their employees will be helpful for companies. Pomfret says that mental health, especially as it relates to workers in an industrial setting, has long been an overlooked and underfunded area of research.
“Whether it’s the stress of producing, whether its shift work, financial or family, working long hours under difficult circumstances, and Caring for a chronically ill relative or Economic hardship, unemployment, underemployment and poverty also have the potential to harm mental health, there’s all kind of things that create stress in the workplace.”
Despite suicide being the #1 cause of non-accidental death among youth, with most who die by suicide having a mental illness, it’s a topic that is often overlooked. Mental health and suicide can be especially tough to talk about given the complexity of the issue and a lack of resources. But it may be one of the most important conversations we can have with our youth.
Both physical and mental health are the result of a complex interplay between many individual and environmental factors, including:
- Family history of illness and disease/genetics
- Lifestyle and health behaviours (e.g., smoking, exercise, substance use)
- Levels of personal and workplace stress
- Exposure to toxins
- Exposure to trauma
- Personal life circumstances and history
- Access to supports (e.g., timely healthcare, social supports) coping skills
When the demands placed on someone exceed their resources and coping abilities, their mental health will be negatively affected.
Occupational Mental health?
Mental health is a state of well-being in which a person understands his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully and is able to make a contribution to his or her community. A Psychologically Safe Workplace is one in which every reasonable effort is made to protect the mental health of employees and to prevent mental injury.
Both physical and mental health are the result of a complex interplay between many individual and environmental factors, including:
- family history of illness and disease/genetics
- lifestyle and health behaviours (e.g., smoking, exercise, substance use)
- levels of personal and workplace stress
- exposure to toxins
- exposure to trauma
- personal life circumstances and history
- access to supports (e.g., timely healthcare, social supports) coping skills
Bio:
Dr. Bill Pomfret; MSc; FIOSH; FBIM
Managing Consultant, Dr. Bill Pomfret & Associates
Incorporating Safety Projects International Inc.
26, Drysdale Street, Kanata, Ontario, K2K 3L3
www.spi5star.com pomfretb@spi5star.com
Tel: 613-2549233