Surveys have shown that managers and other senior members of a team are more likely to be diagnosed with a mental health problem. When compared with any other group of employees.
But surely, in order to support employees with any mental health problems, managers first of all must be in the correct place to do this. Meaning that senior staff should be provided with the correct and adequate training to support their colleagues and other members of senior staff.
What are mental health issues?
A person’s mental health includes psychological, social, and emotional wellbeing. It affects every aspect of a person’s life. Affecting how they feel, what they do, and what they think. It can affect people at all stages of their life. Impacting decisions, empathy, interactions with others.
Mental health issues are related to a wide range of conditions, but can also vary depending on the individual and the strength of the illness. However, external factors can also impact how a person deals with the illness. Including their support systems, their personal situation, and their own ability to handle situations.
Managers and causes of mental health
Ipsos MORI for Teladoc Health found that 31% of managers had, at some point, received a formal mental health-related diagnosis from a healthcare professional. Compared to just 26% of non-managers.
Reasons for mental health-related issues for managers:
- Maintaining a good work-life balance
- Balancing and managing individual and team responsibility
- Managing a team and possible internal conflicts
- Dealing with disciplinaries and appraisals
- Creating a positive culture
- Training, recruitment, and redundancies
- Making final and difficult decisions
- Limited support
- Responsibility for others and their feelings
- Providing motivation for the team and improving the service
- Being client-facing
- Negative opinions about yourself
- Loneliness
However, talking about these issues can be difficult. With 40% of managers explaining that they felt there was a stigma around mental health within their workplace. Meaning these issues are kept to themselves.
Helping managers with mental health issues
Just like for employees, the workplaces that put into place wellbeing interventions and services are more likely to see managers that are loyal. Plus time off sick could decrease, and productivity increases. In addition, studies have shown that when senior members of staff and managers talk about their mental health, this encourages around 50% of the employees to do the same.
An important point to note is that managers are still very much people. With lives, families, pets, children, personal issues, and day-to-day problems.
How Acorn Occupational Health Services can help
Our management referrals and counselling services can assess whether a person is mentally/ physically fit to remain in or return to the workplace. This can include stress management, ill-health retirement, and mental health awareness. For more information, contact our team on 01260 277797 or email us at info@acornoh.co.uk