‘Mental Health Days’ Are Real, and Corporate America Is at Peril If Not Accept It

Mental health and the corporate sector have a deep connection. The burgeoning mental health problems and their grave impacts are one of the most common topics under the national conversation. However, many people working in corporate America are still struggling to accept this reality. Corporate sectors in the USA considers the mental health problem a shenanigan and nothing to worry about this. All they worry about is work. If anyone tells his boss that he is feeling sad or depressed and want to go on a short leave, even just for a single day, the chances of getting some time off are meager because they will not understand. They will view the issue as if the employee is trying to escape from work and just waste time while being paid. Moreover, due to all this, problems increase and become more significant, resulting in poor productivity. It is encouraged to take action and steps in the fight against illness on a corporate level as a corporation is only as productive as its employees. To deal with the problem and act for its resolution. talking and discussing it openly in a corporate environment is the foremost step to follow.

Mental health should be given equity compared to the other health care and should be treated without any discrimination. The awareness of mental health should be given publicly and mostly at the workplaces so that productivity can be increased. Effectiveness and efficiency in any job can be achieved if the worker is in the right mind and right physical health.

Different organizations that include McDonnell Douglas, IBM, and Johnson and Johnson ate working to save millions from outreach practices implemented on people with mental illness.

In June, a well-known website named “The Street” outlined the statistics in which they described the center the mental health place in the United States known as Prevention and control of the disease that described that every year many workers who are depressed or sad and consume their 200 days in working that costs from $17 to $44 billion to employers. The CDC noted that many employees suffering from different chronic mental issues or diseases avoid disclosing their problems or illness in the workplace as they think they will be condemned or stigmatized.

One of the journalists, Gina Ragusa, reported mental health illness that there is a high possibility of missing days and low production, which results from the disclosure of the condition of exacerbating of state, group or individual. It is a fact that mental health disorders are usually overlooked at the workplaces because these issues are not expressed at that place. These disorders affect the health and career of the individual and the productivity at work. 

– Journalist Gina Ragusa

In his interview on The Street, Colleen Fairbanks explained that the coordinator of behavioral health Interactive Health explained in detail that poor productivity or is not only the result of the missed days alone. However, it is a fact that some individuals think that this type of illness is severe in which the individual cannot work or go to work. So when the individual is depressed and goes to work, he does not have a good day, and maybe he feels pretty terrible throughout the day. This personal terrible feeling makes the person disturb and socially awkward. These situations lead to less productivity and poor job performance as well.

Millions Saved by Corporate Sectors by Promoting Mental Health Awareness

In 1999, the Connection of Mental Health was established in the torrent country, Texas. The establishment was a man who was suffering from mental illness and was left untreated entered the church, and seven people were killed, and many were injured by him and then turned the gun on himself and end up taking his own life as well.

Healthcare providers who represented the Dallas Fort, the different classification of advocacy, officially elected individuals, educating people, people from the court system, people who cared, and other people are included in the Connection of Mental Health. Several years ago, a report was published by the Mental Health Connection that explained how different big companies represent the employees and are saving much money by this.

These significant corporate sectors include:  

• IBM: IBM assessed employees’ mental health risks and saved millions of dollars by analyzing medicals claims and referring Employee Assistance Plan. 
• Johnson & Johnson: This company integrated other health and wellness programs from 1995 to 1999 to save per year an average of $8.5 million.
• Pittsburgh Plate Glass Industries (PPG): Counseling of mental health illness was provided to PPG employees. A quarter of the people working there who had counseling said they improved after receiving the counseling. 
• McDonnell Douglas: According to the report, every investment of $1 for employees’ mental health was boosted to $4. The report also claimed that the savings came through a reduced number of absentees in employees, decreased medical claims, and a sharply reduced turnover. 
• Chrysler saw that admissions of patients of mental illness in psychiatric hospitals reduced 12 percent every year. Also, the length of staying of patients in the hospital was reduced by 22 percent. This resulted from implementing the programs that made it easier to detect if the person was a patient of mental health illness or not. The moto of implementation was to have better psychiatric health benefits programs to achieve tremendous success in the diagnosis and treatment methods.  

Signs that A Coworker May Need Mental Health Treatment

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) added more into corporate awareness of mental health stigma. ”Stigmafree Company” was launched on 6 July by the advocacy organization. According to the NAMI news release, the main goal was to highlight and cultivate a different culture of care and enhance mental health awareness in companies.

Although work is good for an individual’s mental health, working in a bad environment has a bad effect on both the physical and mental health of an individual. A man works to his fullest abilities only when he/she enjoys the work or they love the working environment. If a person land in a not so popular job but find the working environment comfortable and productive the individual tend to work with both mental and physical ease. resulting in greater productivity and efficiency.

Different companies working on mental health agreed to participate in the initiative. Mary Gilberti, chief executive officer of NAMI, said that there are almost 60 million Americans with different chronic issues or diseases and have to face visible signs and characteristics surrounding mental illness and the barriers being understood well-responsive even in the workplace. NAMI is thrilled to have these seven companies as business partners and stigma-free companies committed to joining until the end of the fight against mental illness stigma by supporting through education increased awareness and social action.

According to NAMI’s news release: Almost eight out of ten people said that they feel bad and disgusted while sharing the mental health problem with others, which prevents them from getting treatment for this problem. Moreover, mental illness results in a $200 billion loss in earnings each year.

The adverse effects will be reversed by creating a culture of care where the mental health will be recognized and responded better with the companies committed to being a business partner of Stigmafree Company.

Workshops and seminars should be arranged where the problems like mental illness and different stress management techniques will be told at corporate sectors. These seminars should be given the same importance as employee training or regular discussion meetings. Mental illness increases with the increase in workload. It can include anxiety, stress, fatigue, and even panic attacks. Proper guidance for dealing with extra work and managing it with the correct approach can help escape the mental health problems even working excessively. Depression and anxiety are the two disorders that are most common in employees.

According to the Campaign to Change Direction, group leaders from different corporate sectors were included in the wellness initiative of mental health.

Five symptoms that show that the coworker may be suffering from illness or some disorder and requires some assistance are: 

• An unexpected and sudden change in the behaviour
• Being angry at little things, being anxious and agitated, or moody uncharacteristically
• Isolating or withdrawing oneself from others and avoiding others 
• Engaging oneself in risky things and stop caring for oneself
• Being soo much hopeless and depressed by their situations. 

Discussing the Mental Health with The Senior

Talking about your mental health challenges with your employees and especially if you are finding any treatment for them or some other issues, including substance abuse, is a good idea. However, discussing such sensitive topics needs special emotional intelligence. So that the words meant for comfort and ease may not end up hurting someone’s sentiments. Moreover, sensitive information should be disclosed very carefully, even if you are giving some mental health awareness especially related to the corporate sector. As the method used to deliver some information plays a highly significant role in how these words are received and interpreted.

According to NAMI, the best time to disclose sensitive information is when you are well to do it calmly.

Recommendations are to disclose or reveal the diagnosis only if it has any purpose. NAMI suggests telling the employer about the diagnosis if one wants to receive lenient behaviour be at the corporate sector. A lot of reasons can be there to either stay quiet and keep to or reveal the information. Different people in different situations choose whether to tell or not at their own risk.

NAMI to make a list of both advantages and disadvantages of keeping quiet and disclosing the information. It is encouraged to take action and steps in the fight against illness in corporate sectors. Depression and anxiety are the two disorders that are most common in employees. Workers have to face unlawful discrimination when their mental health issues are taken as disabilities. It can be treated with minimal care and support. Referring to it as a disability only adds fuel to the fire and worsens one’s already bad situation.

Mental health should be given equity as compares to other health care and should be treated without any discrimination. The awareness of mental health should be given publically and mostly at the workplaces so that productivity can be increased. The stigma should be reduced in the corporate sector. Make it easier for the workers to share the issues with someone without any hesitation or the fear of loss of a job. Give them confidence and support them. The rate of being successful can be increased by raising mental health awareness in people. It should not be treated as a disability, and due to this, it should not be treated unfavorably. Therefore, it can be said mental health issues are deeply linked with the corporate sector. Call us today for your complete therapies about your mental health disorders. We are here to serve you with our best services.