Your how-to: Training program managers on mental health fundamentals in the workplace
Training program managers on mental health fundamentals in the workplace is an initiative aimed at equipping managers with the essential knowledge and skills to better understand, support and promote mental health within the business environment. This training aims to foster an open and supportive work culture, encouraging discussion about mental health and eliminating the associated stigma.
In this training, managers will learn to identify symptoms of common mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression, the importance of early intervention and strategies for providing appropriate support within their roles. This includes the development and implementation of mental health policies and the integration of mental health into existing health and safety protocols in line with the 'Work Health and Safety Act 2011' of Australia.
This approach recognises the pivotal role of managers as front-line responders in promoting mental health at work and mitigating any possible risk factors associated with mental illness. By investing in this training, businesses can ensure managerial staff are well-equipped to protect employees' mental wellbeing, consequently improving overall workplace productivity, morale, and retention.
Step by step instructions
Identify the Need: Recognise the importance of mental health in the workplace and how it impacts your organisation. Understand your managerial staff’s current level of competence in dealing with mental health issues among employees. Identify gaps and the need for such a training programme.
Involve Key Stakeholders: Ensure the right people are involved in planning and implementing the training. This includes senior management, human resources, occupational health and safety reps and frontline managers. Their buy-in is crucial for the success of the initiative.
Secure Resources and Facilitators: Identify how and by whom the training will be conducted, whether internally or with external consultants. Depending on the size and nature of your organisation, this could be a team from HR, mental health experts or trained facilitators.
Implement the Training: Roll out the programme while fostering a supportive learning environment. Regularly review the learning process to ensure that it is effective and that the intended objectives are being met.
Establish the Objectives: Outline clear parameters and outcomes for the training. These could include better identification of mental health symptoms, early intervention strategies, effective management and handling of mental health cases, improving staff morale and retention, and compliance with Australia’s Work Health and Safety Act 2011.
Develop the Curriculum: Design an informative and engaging training programme. Include learning topics such as mental health basics, common workplace mental health issues, legal responsibilities, the role of a manager in handling mental health issues and best practices for mental health care at the workplace.
Schedule the Training: Arrange adequate sessions to accommodate all managers. This could be one-day workshops or several shorter sessions spread over a few weeks. Ensure minimal disruption to daily operations.
Continual Evaluation: After the training, evaluate its effectiveness. Obtain feedback from the participants and revise the curriculum if necessary. Also, monitor workplace behaviour to see whether the training is being implemented and is making a difference.
Use this template to implement
To ensure you can execute seamlessly, download the implementation template.
Pitfalls to avoid
Where hard skills are tangible, mental health aspects are often intangible depending on the environment or workplace culture. Managers should understand that an accepting and understanding culture is essential to vie mental health matters the importance they deserve.
Managers must realise that mental health matters are sensitive, and thus, respectful and confidential handling is vital. In Australia, due to the Privacy Act 1988, it is crucial to secure the privacy of any disclosed personal information.
The training shouldn’t end post the training session. The efficacy of the programme needs regular evaluation and attention to ensure its ongoing relevance and effectiveness, and a strategy should be in place for this.
The content of your training curriculum must be inclusive, covering common mental health disorders and challenges from depression, anxiety, stress to potential triggers in a workplace setting. Do not fall into the trap of only addressing the 'popular' issues or those deemed most important - mental health is a broad, diverse spectrum.
Understand legal obligations in providing a safe working environment. The Safe Work Australia provides a guide called 'Work-related psychological health and safety: A systematic approach to meeting your duties' - falling afoul of such obligations can both undermine the programme and be legally damaging.
The trainer’s lack of competence can do more harm than good. Assure your trainers are qualified with a strong grasp of mental health fundamentals and are comfortable discussing sensitive topics.