The Potential Impact of the Mental Health Issues - Term Paper Example

 The Importance of Early Intervention in Promoting Mental Health in the Work Place Introduction Most of the mental health problems that keep people out of work usually begin as common problems that could have been detected and prevented in the work place before progression. Because of the stigma and discrimination that is normally associated with mental illness, many employees are often reluctant to disclose their mental health problems at the work place (Stakes, 1999, p.302). Additionally promotion of mental health in the workplace is also often hindered by the tendency to medicalize psycho social disabilities and this may significantly the process of their recovery and return to work. Consequently the primary aim of early intervention of mental health problems in the work place is to reduce the potential impact of the mental health issues both in terms of the duration of recovery and potential damage to the affected individuals. Mental health has been in several occasions promoted in the work places to help create a good coexistence between the employers and employees by enhancing that they appreciate each other in their day-to-day life and environment. As a state of mental, physical and social health, human health is often influenced by a number of interconnecting factors. Generally mental health is a state of health in which the individual realizes his or her own aptitude, can deal with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and rewardingly and is able to make a contribution to his or her community. According to Sturgeon (2005, p.81), mental health illness is currently one of the six major chronic diseases in the work place and nearly one-third of hospitalized patients suffer from mental health related disorders. Evidence has it that, mental illness is continuously becoming the major cause of disability in high-income countries especially in the work places. Statistics of mental health problems at the workplace are continuously on the rise and increases the need for prevention and early intervention of mental health issues in the workplaces. By understanding the importance of early intervention in promoting mental health among employees in the work place, mental illness will significantly reduce. This paper discusses the importance of early intervention in promoting mental health in the workplace as well as the use of some health promotional techniques in the improvement of mental health outcomes. Significance of Early Intervention of Mental Health Problems at the Workplace Early mental health intervention of mental health problems at the workplace is primarily aimed at helping individuals with mental problems to achieve sound mental health and wellness by eliminating barriers through an emphasis on the positive aspects and determinants of mental health. Generally mental health promotion interventions focus on improving the health and mood of the potential victims of psycho social disabilities by creating a peaceful and friendly environment particularly through workplace stress initiatives. One of the major importances of early intervention of mental health problems at the workplace is that it helps to increase productivity and reduce costs related to the management and treatment of mental health problems (John, 2010, p.538). For example, the annual toll of mental illness is estimated to cost billions of dollars to many organizations annually. This is particularly attributed to the current high costs of health and social care services. Additionally if the mental health problems are not detected and prevented in their early stages, productivity at the work place may be significantly affected by absenteeism. According to John( 2010, p.512), organizational productivity may also reduce when employees are at work but are unable to perform their duties effectively due to problems relate to their mental health such as lack of concentration, accuracy or memory loss. With regard to the human and financial costs of mental health tribulations, it is critically important for organizations to develop new ways of ensuring positive and supportive work environments and early intervention strategies in their workplaces. This will consequently eliminate cases of substance abuse and addiction complications among their employees. The cost impact of these effects has resulted to increased expenditure on training and medical treatment. Early intervention to mental health saves on cost not only on the employer but also the employees. When certain issues that can be solved early enough are addressed it reduces the level of depression and ultimately increases productivity. Consequently early intervention corrects and ensures social integration both at work place and community as a whole. In addition reducing discrimination and social inequalities has also been used for promotion of mental health at work place. Similarly employees with mental health problems usually claim three times as many sickness rewards and worker’s compensation claims as compared to their normal counterparts. On the other hand early intervention may also help promote the development of collaborative work environments and unity among the workers. For example, mental help problems may result in more workloads for coworkers when their affected counterparts are absent and destruction of coworkers by the employees on drug use. Additionally individuals involved in substance abuse due to their mental health problems often tend to cause chaotic events in the work place and this may ultimately lead to low morale and lack of unity among employees (Weare, 2005, p.118). Although it may not necessarily prevent the occurrence of mental health problems, mental health promotion has a wider range of social, health and economic benefits. For example it prevents the likelihood of mental breakdown which may lead to anti social activities such as suicide, aggression and violence and it also enhances the promotion of good health, cordial relationships among workers themselves and between them and their employers (Gillham and Reivich, 1999, p.48). It is therefore important for these early interventions in promoting mental health in the work place to be upheld to avert the negative occurrences mentioned. As the world adapts to challenges of global economy and increased demand most workers are made to work in order to meet the global demand. These working conditions have an impact on their physical and emotional health. Through well designed mental health promotion strategies and education, mental health illnesses associated can be reduced and the impact of such early intervention seen in terms of increased productivity. In order to reduce the levels of mental disorders associated with work, it requires early intervention. Increased level of stress associated to work related problems has also been known to increase absenteeism and early retirement (Hall and Havens, 2002, p.74) Early mental health intervention helps solve issues of mental illness early in advance and creates reputational advantage to the organization that carry out early intervention. Such organizations are rewarded with awards that work to build a strong brand in the market. Promotion of mental health at work place has an importance of ensuring that workers have good health and also ensure that factors that can cause mental ill-health such as poor working conditions are eliminated. Increased awareness can also help reduce stigma associated to mental health. Support given at work place, not only helps in preventing mental illnesses at work place, but also encourages social interaction. This care and concern minimizes the impact associated with such conditions. Effective promotion helps to prevent cases of mental illnesses before their onset. Consequently early intervention to mental health has and overall aspect of reducing ill health and employee dissatisfaction which in effect has an impact on the general output of an employee. Gillham and Reivich (1999, p.461) argues that these intervention strategies have had an effect of cutting down on national expenditure on health and increased improvement in health standards. Lastly, mental health conditions promotion is important on individuals, companies and even the society at large. The relationship between organizational work factors, working conditions and mental health should therefore improve and well maintained in each and every given work place so that the psychological state of workers function at a satisfactory level of their own emotional and behavioral adjustment. Strategies of Promoting Mental well being in Individuals with Mental Problems There are a number of strategies that have been developed to promote the mental health well being of the individuals suffering from mental problems at the workplaces. For example, employee assistance programs (EAP) services are usually free to the employee as well as their house-hold members, as provided by the employer. EAPs help manage issues in the employee’s personal live by offering counseling services to them. According to Catalano and Arthur (2002, p.919) disability empowerment through involving the disabled in decision making and providing them with machines can be used to support them and encourage their well being. A well planned return to work formula is important in situation of absenteeism from work due to a case of mental health problem. Consequently this help to give the employee a clear guideline on how to go about it thus releasing stress on the workers as clear guidelines have been set for the same (Jané-Llopis, 2005, p.17). On the other hand, educating employees on a wide range of work related issues may also help them to understand how to detect, prevent and manage mental health problems at their workplaces and organizations. Many studies conducted, and several important interventions brought up to guide on how to acquire good mental health at different work places example, Barry and McQueen (2005, p.456) suggests that work can both contribute to development of ill health apart from the normal mental health condition of an individual where he says through poor working conditions in terms of low wages or even long working hours may lead to ill health. In addition to this, individuals with purpose, financial resources and identity from the working place have been seen to be of increased mental well-being hence are involved actively in their work. In most European countries, the levels of unemployment, absenteeism and long term disability normally happens due to work related stress (Lelliott et al., 2008, p.34). Additionally many experts concur that large workplaces must also have stress counselling offices so the general work force can have a clinic to go when work stresses or stresses while at work take place. This may the office to which people may be affected by mild to moderate depression and an office to which referrals for severe depression may be sought. It is also an office to which women affected by post-natal depression can go to (Klingman, 1993, p.124). The consequences of mental health have been linked to both the positive and negative consequences; positive ones include commitment and involvement of management in employees’ wellbeing, promotion of workers interests and hobbies and provision of mentor to them. Negative consequences leading to mental ill-health have been linked to numerous problems in organizations such as employees’ diminished performance levels, accidents and staff turnover. According to Cox and Rial-Gonzalez (2002, p.5), depression a trend across EU of increasing absenteeism has helped employers deal with these issues affecting employees after early retirement for both men and women and even the rise of absenteeism were observed. More mental problems have been observed in overtaking musculoskeletal as the leading cause sickness in a number of countries. Workers’ mental health can be impacted by their work and working conditions through to pathways which are either the direct or indirect manner (Hawkins, J.D.1997, p.79). Direct manner is normally observed by physical work environment, its associated risks and health factors. In addition, bad physical working conditions can also have indirect impact by causing depression which demoralizes the workers’ will to work (Mrazek, 1994, p.560). Lastly, the role of work on mental health should not be neglected as well. One key area that affects our health is work environment. Work can be beneficial to mental health through an increased sense of social inclusion, status and identity by providing a time structure. Many psychosocial risk factors at work have been found to increase the risk of anxiety, depression and burn-out. The International Labor Organization provides for the elimination of psychosocial hazards as well as integral elements for employees in terms of interaction among job content, work organization, work right and environmental conditions of workers which has been a good technique in improving mental health (Stakes, 1999, p.123). Conclusion In conclusion, early intervention in the promotion of mental health in the workplace has a wider range of social, health and economic benefits. At an individual level, early intervention in the promotion of mental health increases self-esteem and coping abilities associated to psychological stress. On the other hand, some of the potential benefits of early intervention of mental health to the society include social support, social participation, and self-help network at workplace. References Barry, M. & McQueen, D. 2005. The Nature of Evidence and its Use in Mental Health Promotion. Geneva: World Health Organization. Catalano,R.F., & Arthur, M.W. 2002. Promoting science-based prevention in communities. Addictive Behaviour, 27(6), pp.951-976. Cox, T., & Rial-Gonzalez, E. 2002. Work-related stress: The European picture. Magazine of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, (5), pp.4-6. Gillham, J.E., & Reivich, K.J. 1999. Prevention of depressive symptoms at the work place : A research update. Psychological Science (10), pp.461-462. Hall, M. & Havens, B. 2002. Social Isolation and Social Loneliness. Mental Health and Aging, (18), pp.33-42. Hawkins, J.D.1997. Community interventions to reduce risks and enhance protection against antisocial behavior. New York: John Wiley. Jané-Llopis, E. 2005. From evidence to practice: mental health promotion effectiveness. Promotion and Education, Journal of mental health,(1), pp. 21-27. John, G., 2010. Presenteeism in the workplace: A review and research agenda. Journal of Organizational Behaviour, 31, 519-542. Klingman, A.G. 1993. Coping with distress and self harm: The impact of a primary prevention program among employees. Journal of Adolescence, (16), pp. 121-140. Lelliott, P., Boardman, J., Harvey, S., Henderson, M., & Knapp, M., 2008. Mental health and work. London: Royal College of Psychiatrists. Mrazek P.J.1994. Reducing risks of mental disorder: Frontiers for preventive intervention research. Washington: National Academy Press. Stakes,K. 1999. Introduction to mental health issues in the EU, Finnish: Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. Helsinki: Finland. Sturgeon, S. K.2005. Promoting Mental Health: Concepts, Emerging Evidence, Practice. Geneva: World Health Organization. Weare,K.W. 2005. What do we know about promoting mental health through schools? Promotion & Education, 12 (3), pp. 118-122. Read More