A person who is suffering from a mental health condition can find it problematic to go into work every day. Managing their daily workload whilst attempting to mask their condition for fear of losing their job, is a situation they face on a daily basis. This is because regretfully many organisations still stigmatise those perceived to have a mental health condition. As a result they very often manage in silence.
It is also challenging for the line manager who may suspect that a member of his team or a colleague is struggling. He is lost as to how to help them for fear of getting it wrong and opening a “can of worms” or a “Pandora’s box.” HR managers often get called in when a situation has escalated and in attempting to resolve it find that it is filled with problem after problem. It is an issue also for senior management who are ultimately responsible for the effectiveness and profitability of the company, and the health and well-being of its employees.
If we look at it in absolute business terms, according to The Depression Alliance, a failure to manage mental health in the workplace costs the UK economy as much as £9bn in salaries with a further unknown cost in terms of both lost time and productivity. In addition, many organisations lose the skills and experience of many capable employees who are managed incorrectly and feel they have no choice but to choose between a deterioration of mental health or leaving their employment.
Mental health in the workplace really can be managed without too much difficulty. However, there is no ‘one approach’. As each company is different, it is often the stigma and fear that surrounds mental health that is problematic, rather than the management of someone that has a mental health condition. It does not need to be so difficult to manage someone that has a mental health condition. Most managers are capable of supporting an employee with a broken arm, it is concrete and understandable. However, most managers are lost when it comes to supporting a member of their staff that suffers from depression.
Without doubt, education is the first important step in understanding and implementing a workable solution. Providing Mental health awareness training has many benefits for the organisation. Managers learn the most effective ways of managing someone with either a suspected or diagnosed mental health condition, as well as helping their team cope during times when a member of the team is displaying some of the challenging behaviours associated with the most common mental health conditions. Many organisations lose the skills and experience of many capable employees who are managed incorrectly and feel they have no choice but to choose between a deterioration of mental health or leaving their employment.
Copyright In Equilibrium 2012
Mental health awareness training for organisations