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Please watch this film and share it as widely as possible. Mental Health is a serious issue for businesses and people alike and it needs to be tackled. As one of our interviewees says if one in 6 employees had an accident at work in any one year there would be an outcry but because its mental health little is being done...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiXUf58I0EU
I'm working on an article about accommodation generally - the stigma is huge... As someone who suffers from a chronic health condition, depression is always a risk and I'd love to see greater understanding in the workplace. A mental health first aided is a great idea!
DuncanBrown - excellent video, thank you for sharing!
Tricky one this.........I guess that mirrors much of what is said.........but I feel compelled to make some statement especially on behalf of small Employers.
See, the idea of a mental health first aider makes much sense for larger organisations, but for the owner of a small business with, say, 8 Employees, it is not so easy. In many cases they are close enough to their people to sense when something is wrong...........the problem they face is where to go for help.
So my first recommendation is to the groups out there in the community who deal with mental health issues, to focus more on helping businesses. In New Zealand I am unaware of many such organization who deliberately visit on businesses offering help. They tend more to wait for people to contact them, and that for a business person is not easy. Much easier for family or friend to make the contact.
My second recommendation is for commentators/ consultants/advisers to be a little more accurate when apportioning blame on Employers. Of course the workplace bully and the unacceptable work loads are important factors, but we need to consider how much outside influences bring about mental health issues..........and let's not forget that small Employer's mental health who has mortgaged much of what they own on the line to make the business work. In my long experience in industrial relations it oftentimes appears so easy to load more and more on to Employers. Just be accurate in apportioning "blame". For the same reason I have much sympathy for teachers who are increasingly being called on to do what parents should be doing.
.........and my third recommendation is to begin targeting top management when it comes to equipping folk with the skills etc to recognize and then deal with mental health issues. Have we forgotten that if front line managers are not doing their job in this or any respect, then how come their boss and their bosses boss is not called to account? I believe we have forgotten, and it is about time we began to put responsibility back up the line.
Good article. Cheers. DonR.
Brilliant idea but implementing might be another thing. I would def. say we need Mental Aid First Aider in all large organisations.
Thanks for sharing it and this would be something I will raise it with my organisation. You don't get if you don't ask!
If anyone is interested, I have prepared a section for Employer Handbooks, prepared in collaboration with our local suicide prevention folk as well as the local workplace support group [previously Workplace Chaplains], which I recommend to my clients, covering this topic. I'm more than happy to share without cost; just let me have your email address.
Cheers. DonR.
As I'm currently trying to deal with anxiety-induced stress and having been off work for a couple of weeks with a sense-of-humour failure, this has been worth a read; thank you.
Though I'm back at work I have the feeling of isolation you described and yesterday morning, for example, I sat at my desk in a state of paralysis whilst a storm of contradicting arguments (logic vs emotion) went on in my head.
If there was someone I could have gone to talk to about it...yes, that would have been so much more helpful in getting some stability. It's an good concept, but getting it introduced might not be easy.
I've attached a You Tube clip that describes the Black Dog that you might find of interest...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiCrniLQGYc