Mental Health Awareness week is recognised every year in May, and many employers work hard all year-round to keep mental health high on the agenda. What most of us don’t tend to touch on, probably because it’s still a bit of a taboo, is suicide. It was only decriminalised in the UK in 1961, and it’s a tough subject for most of us to face.

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Whatever is going on in the mind of the person who commits suicide, those of us who are close to that person will feel the same range of emotions we do with any bereavement, although perhaps exacerbated, with the onus being on the guilt because we didn’t or couldn’t do anything, or didn’t notice that anything was wrong. It’s a complex subject.

Samaritans

The charity specifically set up to help those who feel desperate, the Samaritans, says men are three times more likely to commit suicide than women, with the highest suicide rate being in men between the ages of 45 and 49. These are the official figures, but the unofficial figures are higher than this because there is still a reluctance to record deaths as suicide.

The Impact of Work

Whether we realise it or not, we all have an impact on others, and as managers, we have the potential to help others. If we do not manage well or fail to manage organisational change well, it can add to employee stress. Practitioners such as those in occupational health Swindon can advise on actions that can be taken.

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What can we do?

Easy access to counselling services is a good place to start. Even if organisations do not have in-house occupational health services, many employee assistance programmes include online CBT programmes and self-referral to counsellors.

Mental health first aid courses, which train people to recognise early symptoms of stress, are proving to be successful, working alongside management. Occupational health Swindon is one of the places where this training is run. Remember to support mental health first-aiders their role. They can suffer from stress, too, and may themselves need referral to occupational health Swindon has some great practices.

When employees are off sick, maintain contact with them, particularly if they have any type of mental health issue. Prevention is essential.