Supporting Mental Wellbeing in the Workplace

Written By Amon Mutyasira

At Winserve Care Services, we recognise the importance of our mental wellbeing and maintaining this within a healthy approach. Our job is to be the supportive pillar to those going through the worst. Our work can put pressure on our mental wellbeing and as such we are always looking at ways to create a place that promotes balance and a good, healthy wellbeing.

What is mental health?

The World Health Organisation (WHO) describes mental health as ‘a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realise their abilities, learn well and work well, and contribute to their community.’ To have positive mental health means we are less likely to develop unhealthy habits, exhibited through positivity and functioning capably in different situations. Living with negative mental health means there is a disruption to a good emotional mindset, effecting our:

  • Thoughts and emotions.

  • Communication and behaviour.

  • Mood, creating a feeling of dejection.

How to care for ourselves

To have good wellbeing is to be open, comfortable, and confident. Utterly, it is valuing ourselves for the better. As individuals, we should be willing to participate in self-care. Some suggestions on caring for our mental wellbeing are to:

  • Set goals and challenges – Set yourself daily, realistic challenges and goals to reduce the amount of workload. 

  • Adopt a healthy lifestyle – Getting sufficient sleep, eating healthy meals, and regular exercise are key in helping you stick to a schedule and maintaining activity with your body and mind.

  • Stay connected – Keeping in contact with those around you is important, as reaching out can provide you with emotional support and help.

  • Focus on positivity and gratitude – To discourage negativity, remind yourself what you are grateful for and journal it down.

  • Counselling – For immediate help, counselling is a great option to speak to someone outside of your space. The NHS provides counselling, yet due to large strain on the NHS, there is currently a 13-month waiting list. Other private options recommended are the organisation MIND, Bradford counselling, and Affordable Counselling

Mental wellbeing in the workplace

Often, negative mental health can be affected by stressful work situations. In 2017, the government commissioned an independent review on how employers can provide for employees with mental health conditions – the ‘Thriving at Work’ report outlines what ALL employers ought to be capable of supporting staff with. In agreement, Winserve will:

  • Continue to adhere to the QCS policies – We closely follow the QCS policies around safeguarding, Stress and Mental Health in the Workplace Policy and Procedure and the Mental Health Act 1983 and Regulations 2008 Policy and Procedure.

  • Communicate with a mental health advocate – We are appointing a member of staff to be a champion for someone to speak to if they need assistance. Advocates can be there to support staff through the process of gaining counselling. Mindwell has a list of mental health services that can support over the phone and our appointed advocate will be there to aid if wished.

  • Create mental wellbeing surveys – All answers remain anonymous, and a confidential report typically follows, analysing result trends and responses to written answers.

  • Encourage support service use – The NHS website informs you on accessing a variety of local support services. The website ‘Hub of Hope’ can assist finding local mental health charities.

  • Review workloads – With the increase of hiring staff, this should reduce workload in time. This is a viable way to deter the risks of workload stress for all.

Amon Mutyasira
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