5 Steps to Create a Mentally Well Workplace

Sarka Hill July 9, 2020

Career Development Centre will be exhibiting at the

MENTAL HEALTH CONNECT I 2020 ONLINE EXPO

Australia is facing many workplace challenges, not least of which is employee mental health.

The World Health Organisation has forecast that depression will become the leading contributor to the global burden of disease by 2030.
It makes good sense, both financially and ethically, to monitor and address the mental health of your workforce. Having a mentally well workplace is advantageous in all aspects of a business including boosting productivity, reducing absence and retaining good quality
staff.

Former Prime Minister and Beyond Blue chair, Julia Gillard, recently addressed the CEDA’s State of the Nation Summit. Speaking out about the deep impact on our workforce and highlighting the economic and personal cost of mental ill health. “Eight million working days
are lost due to mental ill-health in Australia each year”, Ms Gillard told the conference in Canberra.

So, where do you start? Leaders, managers and all employees need to have access to training to understand their own mental health and the mental health of those around them. For leaders and managers, this knowledge needs to extend to understanding not only how to address mental health in workplaces but also how to prevent mental ill health being caused by or worsened by workplaces. Owners, leaders and managers must understand the relevance of placing mental health on an equal footing with physical health, starting at the recruitment and induction stage.

Risk factors in workplaces that negatively affect your workforce or may lead to mental ill-health is often set in the culture of the environment. This includes:

• Working long hours for long periods of time
• Unrealistic targets and deadlines
• Heavy workloads
• Little or no support
• Unclear role definitions and measurement of success
• Toxic workplace – bullying or discrimination

Steps to create a mentally well workplace:

1. Find out what’s going on – speak to your employees and managers at all levels of your business. Where are the negative stressors? Where are the risk factors (based on prevalence/incidence). What are the cost implications?

2. Mental Health Policy – consult with employees and managers at all levels to develop and implement a dedicated Mental Health Policy. The policy should include concerns, risks, evaluation and outcomes.

3. Education – mental health training for all employees, including Mental Health
Induction https://www.mentallywellworkplaces.com.au/courses/mental-healthinduction/ Mental Health First Aid training – a Mental Health First Aider for every
Physical First Aider in the workplace

4. Open conversations – wherever you’re talking about physical health, wellbeing, absences, workplace culture or finance you should be talking about the mental health of your workforce. Mental health should be a standard agenda item at all levels of the business.

5. Provide employees with good working conditions – fair pay and job security, employee consultation and representation, clarity around job roles, zero tolerance of bullying and harassment.

Tina Winchester, Director of Mental Health – Career Development Centre & Mentally Well Workplaces Principal Master Mental Health First Aid Instructor

Tina has a distinguished career in psychiatric services and brings an abundance of knowledge and experience to the team. Working in the UK across inpatient and community services. Tina’s achievements include sitting on Executive Management Teams, leading projects affiliated with the Department of Psychiatry and Department of Health, project managing the first Crisis Resolution Home Treatment Team in the South East of England and taking on the role of Assistant Mental Health Commissioner.

Moving to Australia in 2007, Tina shared her expertise of mental health and counselling through training new counselors and providing private practice care. As a Principal Master Mental Health First Aid Instructor she delivers courses with a humorous and engaging style, her empathy has been described as ‘contagious’ with an impressive ability to read a room and put participants at ease.

A regular keynote speaker invited to address both domestic and international audiences. Tina is a passionate and committed mental health advocate pushing to drive change and end the stigma of mental health in workplaces and communities.