Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace and Mental Health First Aid: Working with EFAP’s

XIV EAEF Annual Conference, Madrid, Spain, June 18-19, 2015

Presenter: François Legault, MSW,CSW, Principal Consultant, Consult-Action Inc., Mindful Employer Canada, Ambassador, Mental Health Commission of Canada, Certified Instructor MHFA

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Outline of Today’s Presentation

Canada’s National Standard on PHSWhy MHFA?What is MHFA?Where is it Offered?How does it all work with EFAP’s?Results

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30-50% of all disability claims are for reasons of mental

ill-health and it is 70% for younger workers (OEDC 2013)

$16 Trillion in estimated global lost economic output over the next 20 years (WHO 2013)

Why Focus on Psychological Health and Safety? Stats Confirm the Importance of this Issue

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• Absenteeism• Présenteeism• Loss in productivity• Disability Insurance Costs/LTD• Injuries/ Sick Leave/STD• Complaints/Grievances• Poor Staff Retention/Turnover• Liability\Legal Costs

The Cost of Doing Nothing

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The Cost-Effectiveness of Doing Something?

Depression= “very cost-effective”Psychosis= “quite cost-effective”Alcohol Abuse=“very cost-effective”

(WHO, 2013)

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How do We Treat the Mentally Ill?

“Negative cultural attitudes …persist”(who,2013)

What if we Treated Everyone like we Treat the Mentally Ill? Video - Struck Down-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBqEz7q5Zp4

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Workplace Mental Health Factors

Psychological Support

Organizational Culture

Clear Leadership & Expectations

Civility & Respect

Psychological Job Fit

Growth & Development

Recognition & Reward

Involvement & Influence

Workload Management

Engagement

Balance

Psychological Protection

Supportive Physical Environment

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What Can be Done in the Workplace?

EFAP

Address Psychosocial Risk Factors

Train Managers on Workplace Mental Health

Address Stigma

Peer Support Training

Support Managers around Accommodation and Return to Work

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Need a framework to align your efforts? Implement the National Standard for Psychological

Health & Safety in the Workplace (the Standard)

The Standard is a set of guidelines, tools & resources focused on promoting employees’ psychological health & preventing psychological harm due to workplace factors

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Top industry sectors Healthcare Government

/Judicial/Policing Education

Top regions Ontario British Columbia Alberta Quebec Nova Scotia

The Standard is Gaining Traction

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Case Study Research Project (MHCC)• Following more than 40

organizations• 3 year national study• Primary objectives

• Determine promising practices for implementation

• Breakdown barriers to implementation and identify gaps and challenges

• Identify tools/resources to help with implementation

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Organizational Motivations for Implementation

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MHCC and the CSA Group collaborated to develop “Assembling the Pieces: An Implementation Guide to the National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace” • Intended to be used in conjunction

with the Standard

• Assist organizations through the initial planning stages through to full implementation

• Officially launched in November 2014

www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/standardguide

Navigate the Journey

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Mental Health First Aid

Is a 2 Day Course Aimed to:

Improve Mental Health Literacy

Reduce Stigma

Support People with Skills and Knowledge

Respond Confidently and Proactively to Mental Health Issues

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Evidence Based Outcomes

Significantly greater recognition of the most common mental health disorders

Decreased social distance from people with mental disorders

Increased confidence in providing help to others

Demonstrated increase in help actually provided

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Goals of First Aid:

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Goals of Mental Health First Aid

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Signs and Symptoms

• Substance Related Disorders• Mood Disorders• Anxiety Disorders• Psychotic Disorders• Deliberate Self-Injury (Youth Course)• Eating Disorders (Youth Course)

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ALGEE- The Centerpiece of MHFA

•Assess risk of suicide and/or harm•Listen non-judgmentally•Give reassurance and information•Encourage the person to get appropriate professional help•Encourage other Supports

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Crisis First Aid

Suicidal behaviour

Overdoses

Panic Attacks

Reactions to traumatic events

Psychotic episodes

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Mental Health First Aid in Canada

•Over 135,000 people trained•A network of over 1,600 instructors•Active in every province and territory•In both Official Languages ( French and English)•Active in every economic and social sector

• Oil and gas• Construction• Education• First Responders• Social Services

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Resources/Actions

Train employees in Mental Health First Aid so they can recognize emerging mental health problems or crises in themselves and their colleagues, and provide initial help: http://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.ca/EN/Pages/default.aspx

Download the National Standard on Psychological Health and Safety at www.csagroup.ca or the Action Guide for Employers – provides guidelines that encourage executive leadership to commit to making mental health in their workplace a priority

Visit Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace for free tools & resources: http://www.gwlcentreformentalhealth.com/english/index.asp

As an Employer join Mindful Employer by signing the Charter, train and support Managers through Mindful Manager Program : http://mindfulemployer.ca or http://mindfulemployer.org

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Take advantage of the free and comprehensive set of resources offered by Guarding Minds at Work to help protect and promote psychological health and safety in the workplace: http://www.guardingmindsatwork.ca/

Learn about additional solutions for employers and supports for employees offered by Mental Health Works, a national program of the Canadian Mental Health Association

Join Partners for Mental Health in taking the pledge to support the improvement of mental health for all Canadians: http://www.partnersformh.ca/

Resources/Actions (Cont’d)

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Thank you!

Visit: www.mentalhealthcommission.ca

www.consult-actioninc.com

www.mindfulemployer.ca

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