Mental health at work: how companies can support remotely

[Man with his back turned talking to another man over a video call platform]

Maintaining a stable career nowadays can be challenging, whether obstacles arise in your work environment, or from personal issues that hinder your corporate development. The business world had to adapt quickly to the Covid-19 pandemic in order to keep activities going. However, during this process many people’s mental health in the workplace was severely impacted.

Just like physical wellbeing, mental health is key to a human being’s integrity. But the instability of the corporate field, coupled with the pandemic, has affected the overall population, and the impact is being felt even by professionals who are able to keep working despite everything else. Stress, anxiety and other kinds of mental disorders have further emphasized the importance of focusing on mental health in the workplace.

Bringing up this subject in the workplace is more relevant now than ever before. To promote healthier work relations with your company’s workforce, here are some topics which your HR team should take into consideration:

Concern over the coronavirus and unemployment has impacted mental health in the workplace, with studies pointing to the increasing emergence of depression, and symptoms of anxiety.

A study entitled “Depression and Anxiety Among Essential Workers in Brazil And Spain During the Covid-19 Pandemic”, carried out between April and May 2020, pointed out that symptoms of anxiety and depression are higher among Brazilians working in essential services, who make up 55% of the total workforce.

For companies, it is key to regularly track the wellbeing of your contributors, maintaining open and welcoming communication channels. One way to reduce the team’s physical and emotional wastage is to develop the positive aspects and abilities of your contributors. The companies should also incentivise seeking professional help, aiming to help workers receive the best care, in order to carry out your tasks in the best way possible.

One of the first steps for companies who look for quality in their working relations is to invest in talks and speeches from specialised consultancies. At Sherlock Communications, for example, our Diversity and Inclusion team’s initiative began in January 2021, with a talk about mental health in the workplace.

Mental Clean, a consultancy specialised in Management of Mental and Emotional Health and Quality of Life, led a conversation about health, wellbeing and physical and emotional balance, with the goal of improving the team’s quality of life.

During this conversation, the Mental Clean team was led by Felipe Silva, who talked about the impacts of the pandemic on people’s mental health and discussed everyday techniques, such as ways to manage one’s work routine .

In these tough times, it is important for companies to consider similar initiatives focused on the subject, analysing the best options depending on each topic. Bringing mental health specialists into the workplace to work alongside your team can make all the difference.

Many companies are currently carrying out their activities remotely, with each member of the team working from home. However, a lack of physical contact should not inhibit people who need help to deal with a decline in their work performance.

Incentivising the search for professional help is a good way to help co-workers, ensuring they will have access to the care they need, and will be able to restore their mental health.

Mental health in the workplace should be a priority for every company as we begin another year under atypical conditions that directly affect everyone’s wellbeing. Maintaining contact with co-workers to offer adequate support for each individual will keep everyone on the shared path towards overall health.