I wrote recently about the importance of being able to own up to mental health issues at work, and whilst it’s perhaps fair to say that creating a culture where such things are possible is a good first step, it’s also probably fair to say that most managers are wholly ill-equipped to handle such a scenario should it arise.

So a team from the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) have developed guidance on so called ‘mental health first aid’ (MHFA) in the workplace.  The guidance is designed to assist companies in the development of mental health support systems, with the goal of mental health first aid being seen on a par with physical first aid.

At the moment, MHFA is largely a volunteer effort, and the IOSH believe this carries risks, as they think it should form part of a much wider business approach to mental health.  They have divided their guidance into two forms:

• A benchmarking tool to help organizations assess and design their mental health systems and support.
• They have also produced an information sheet on the adoption and implementation of mental health first aid in the workplace.  The document covers some of the limitations of the MHFA role and how it can be integrated into wider systems of support.

“Mental health first aid and similar training courses are specific interventions that may be considered for managing mental wellbeing, but they don’t tackle the root cause of the issue,” the IOSH say. “IOSH calls for a ‘prevention first’ approach incorporating MHFA as part of an organisation’s overall efforts to protect their workforce from mental health problems.”

They believe that most mental health problems at work stem from the culture and the way the organization functions, so it’s vital that a systemic approach is adopted that includes contributions from across the business.  Given the scale of the problem, it’s a change that really can’t come soon enough.