mind.org.uk

Mental Health in the WorkplaceCosting the Earth

Chester Law School

2nd April, 2014

Your Speaker for today

• James Moore• Background in Psychiatric Services• Working in the field since 1983• Associate Trainer with MIND since 1998• Currently working part-time in practice with service

users who experience a range of mental health difficulties as well as with MIND.

Source: Goldberg and Huxley (1992), Common mental disorders, Routledge

1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem in any one year.

This week in the UK…•104 people will take their own life•250,000 people will visit their doctor

about a mental health problem

•750,000 prescriptions for antidepressants will be issued.

The Business Case for

Workplace Mental Health.

Introduction to mental health in the workplace

• Mental health exists along a spectrum

• Everyday stress, feelings of anxiety and depression exist at one end of a spectrum, with severe forms of these conditions existing at the far end

• A diagnosis of a mental health problem occurs when the severity of symptoms impact on a person’s ability to function

Mental health conditions in Britain

• The Office of National Statistics says 9.2 % of adults in Britain have a combination of anxiety and depression

• Around 1-2% of the population experience a severe condition such as psychosis or bipolar disorder

• Personality disorders: uncertain, under review

Office of National Statistics 2012

Work-related stress

‘The adverse reaction people have to excessive pressure or other types of demand placed upon them’

Health and Safety Executive, 2004

The case for managing mental health at work

• Legal

• Ethical

• Business

Legal

Health and Safety at Work Act

(1974), duty to take measures to identify

and control risk

•Management of Health and Safety Regulations

(1999), assess the risk of stress-related ill health

arising from work activities

•The Equality Act (2010), duty to make reasonable adjustments in order not to discriminate against someone with a disability

Legal cont’d

• Whether or not you have a mental health problem, an employer has a duty of care to their employees’ physical and mental health under health and safety legislation

• Employers have a duty to assess the risks arising from hazards at work, including work-related mental health problems e.g someone becoming very stressed due to an increased workload

Ethical

• Physical effects of stress such as heart disease,

back pain, headaches, gastrointestinal

disturbances and a wide range of other

ailments

• Psychological and social effects associated with stress and other mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression: loss of concentration and decision making, and a wide range of emotional and behavioural changes that impact negatively on a person’s wellbeing, both in and outside work

Business

• Staff performance and productivity

• Attendance levels

• Employee commitment to work

• Accidents or mistakes caused by human errors

• Staff turnover and intention to leave

• Staff recruitment and retention

• Customer satisfaction

• Organisational image and reputation

• Potential litigation

A brief reminder of what happens when mental health isn’t

managed at work

• Cases of stress related illness in 2011/12 accounted for 40% of all work related illnesses (HSE 2012)

• 44% of employers reported an increase in mental health problems

• Stress has become the most common cause of long term sickness absence for all employees

• Average level of employee absence has fallen compared with last year from 7.7 days to 6.8 per year

• But this fall coincides with an increase in the number of employers reporting an increase in the number of people going into work ill – ‘presenteeism’

(CIPD Absence management survey 2012)

What does a Mentally

Resilient Workplace look

like ?

Promoting wellbeing and encouraging disclosure• Support a culture of openness and ease in relation to stress and mental

health problems

• Managers should role model good stress management

• Posters, leaflets, booklets promoting mental wellbeing

• Encourage self care: stress management, support, exercise, balanced diet, getting involved, staying connected

• Sensitivity to mental health in male staff (less likely to disclose, less likely to seek support)

• Cultural awareness and sensitivity to differing beliefs and norms concerning mental health

Heron & Teasdale 2009 (Shift Resources for Managers)

What is reasonable? The $65,000 question!

• This depends on the person requiring support, the organisation, and the particular circumstances involved

• An adjustment that is reasonable for someone in one department might not be reasonable for someone else in a different department or another organisation

The HSE Management Standards

• Demands• Control• Support• Relationships• Role• Change

• Demands – this includes issues such as workload, work patterns and the work environment

• Control – how much say the person has in the way they do their work

• Support – this includes the encouragement, sponsorship and resources provided by the organisation, line management and colleagues

• Relationships – this includes promoting positive working to avoid conflict and dealing with unacceptable behaviour

• Role – whether people understand their role within the organisation and whether the organisation ensures that they do not have conflicting roles

• Change – how organisational change (large or small) is managed and communicated in the organisation

The law requires us to consider:• Cost• Practicality• Effectiveness• Disruption• Effect on others• Health and safety• Length of service• Valuable skills, contacts or training• External sources of help, e.g. Access to Work

Challenges & Opportunities going forward in 2014 & beyond

Health at work – an independent review of sickness absence in Great Britain

• On 17 February 2011 the government called for a major review of the sickness absence system in Great Britain in order to help combat the 140 million days lost to sickness absence every year. The review was jointly chaired by David Frost, former Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, and Dame Carol Black, then National Director for Health and Work, and published on 21 November 2011

Health and Work Service

• provide occupational health advice and support for employees, employers and GPs to help people with a health condition to stay in or return to work

• There are 2 elements to the service• OT assessment once employee has reached, or is expected

to reach 4 weeks sickness absence• will receive a return to work plan • a tax exemption of up to £500 a year for each employee on

medical treatments recommended by the Health and Work Service or an employer-arranged occupational health service

Mental Health & Employment of Veterans

• Figures obtained by the charity Veterans In Prison revealed that 7,999 of the country's 80,000 prisoners had served in the forces ( Daily Mail, 2/4/2014)

• Been described as UK’s Mental Health “ticking timebomb”

Anybody there?At Mind there’s always someone to turn to…

Mind InfolineMonday to Friday, 9.00am to 6.00pm

0300 123 3393info@mind.org.uk