We offer a range of services relating to workplace mental health and wellbeing including:

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• Workshops and training on how to create mentally healthy workplaces

• Consulting and diagnostic support to identify and reduce psychosocial risk hazards in an organisation

• Wellbeing at work programs

• Coaching

 

WHAT IS WORKPLACE MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING?

 

Employers are required under the current WHS laws to provide safe working environments, both physical and psychological safety. It is very promising to see more and more organisations proactively embracing these laws, seeing the value in creating mentally healthy workplaces, and wanting to better understand how they can support their workers to have good mental health. 

 

Work can be very good for people’s mental health with a range of benefits that go beyond financial security, such as providing a sense of purpose, creating social connections, and opportunities to develop and make a meaningful contribution.  However, work can also be detrimental to people creating stress, burnout and mental ill health.  Psychological distress in the workplace is linked to a range of downsides for an organisation such as increased absenteeism, higher staff turnover, presenteeism, reduced discretional effort and reduced quality of work, to name a few.  

 

And of course, there is the financial impact. A recent study by PwC and Beyond Blue estimated that absenteeism resulting from employee mental ill health cost Australian businesses $4.7 billion per annum (equivalent to 1.1 million days’ sick leave), while presenteeism was estimated to cost Australian businesses $6.1 billion a year.  Compensation claims resulting from mental health conditions were estimated to cost Australian businesses $146 million a year.  This research also demonstrated how organisations who successfully implemented an effective workplace mental health strategy could expect, on average, a positive return on investment (ROI) of 2.3. That is, for every dollar spent on successfully implementing an appropriate action, there is on average $2.30 in benefits to be gained by the organisation.

 

While fruit bowls, lunch time walks and positive thinking are great (and we encourage these wellbeing practices to be embraced), these are not the primary areas of focus when supporting a business to create a mentally healthy workplace. Instead, the focus is on addressing the factors which the research shows has a direct positive or negative impact on its staff’s mental health, such as job design, workload, role ambiguity, level of autonomy, communication, supervisor support, and quality of relationships, to name a few. 

 

Our methodologies are aligned with the most current research showing the importance of focusing on harm prevention, early intervention, supporting recovery and promoting good health.  We are passionate about supporting businesses with identification and removal of psychosocial risk factors and believe this is integral to creating good mental health and wellbeing at work. 

     

Our approach is also underpinned by the belief that mental health is something that everyone has, just like physical health. This approach stems from the theoretical model which views mental health and mental illness as belonging to two separate dimensions, not being two ends of the one continuum.  This simple, but powerful, change in theoretical approach creates a wealth of benefits, such as recognising that people with a diagnosed mental illness can have good mental health, thrive and be high performers. And also that high performing individuals with no history of mental illness can be struggling with their mental health and at risk of psychological harm.  This approach results in all people being considered when developing a mental health strategy, not just people with diagnosable mental illness, and is conducive to supporting businesses and people to take a proactive, preventative and early intervention approach towards mental health challenges.

 

At an individual level, there are a range of strategies that can be drawn on to improve overall wellbeing.  We use a range of positive psychology tools, mindfulness techniques and cognitive behavioural coaching techniques to support enhancement of wellbeing.

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To learn more about how we can help you or your organisation with workplace mental health and wellbeing, please email us on info@kylieyoungconsulting.com.au or complete the form under the Contacts page.