Employee Mental Health: Why It Is Important To Maintain It And How To Do It

Mental health: why it matters?

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that productivity losses due to depression and anxiety cost the global economy $ 1 trillion a year. In addition, the WHO found that for every $ 1 spent on treating common mental illnesses, $ 4 is returned due to improved health and productivity.

At the same time, presenteeism is increasingly spreading in companies — a phenomenon in which people go to work, suffering from physical or mental health problems, which leads to decreased productivity and overwork in the absence of work results.

There are several benefits to supporting employee well-being.

Increased productivity. Research shows that nearly 86% of people treated for depression begin to cope with more tasks. According to some studies, it also reduces absenteeism and presenteeism by 40–60%.

Reducing the cost of medical care. According to the National Alliance for Mental Illness in the United States, rates of cardiovascular and metabolic disease are twice as high in adults with severe mental illness.

The relationship between physical and mental health prompted the American Heart Association CEO Roundtable to release the report Mental Health: A Workforce Crisis.

“Not taking action is more expensive than investing in evidence-based approaches to prevention and treatment,” the report says.

He encourages employers to provide comprehensive programs for the prevention and treatment of mental illness.

Four Ways to Maintain Mental Wellbeing in the Workplace:

Understand how mental health affects employees.

“It’s important that managers recognize the signs of emotional distress and respond with support rather than punishment,” said Dr. Jerome Schultz, a clinical neuropsychologist and faculty member at Harvard Medical School.

Here are the steps to take.

Introduce mandatory training for company management. This will help increase their knowledge and interest in the field of mental health.

Explain to managers what to do if they notice signs of emotional distress and substance abuse.

Use special calculators to estimate the prevalence and costs of untreated depression and substance abuse in your company.

Conduct surveys among employees to determine how their health and stress levels affect productivity.

Offer free psychological help.

Include psychologist services in your health insurance plan or organize Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) to help you solve psychological, financial, and legal problems.

Some people are reluctant to use these resources because they are ashamed or do not understand how these programs work. To fix this, you can do the following.

Provide direct access to mental health professionals by phone or in person.

Offer these services to both employees and their immediate families.

Explain who to contact if you need help.

Explain that EAP can be accessed free of charge and confidentially.

Reduce stigma and expand access to counseling.

Don’t wait for critical situations in your workplace. Communicate regularly with employees about the benefits of mental health care and the resources the company offers to do so. For example, organize regular mailings and seminars.

Also, make sure emotional well-being is included in everything from hiring to building a healthy corporate culture.

Arrange the necessary conditions.

So that employees do not forget to take care of their health, it is important not only to remind them of this but also to provide suitable conditions.

Offer flexible working hours for all staff.

Provide access to apps that help improve sleep quality and reduce stress.

Set up a meditation or yoga room in the office.

Encourage employees to take vacations. To do this, some companies are reducing the number of vacation days that can be carried over to the next year.

Develop a return-to-work process for those who have to take time off due to mental health issues. This will help them feel supported and make it easier for them to adapt.

Finally, provide the conditions for building strong team relationships. For example, through community events and communities of interest.

“Employees are more susceptible to the negative effects of stress in and outside the workplace if they have not built positive relationships with colleagues,” Schultz says. According to him, such events help make work more interesting, as well as bring people together so that each of them feels supported by the others.