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Sam Downie discussed the positive impacts of work on our physical and mental health as long as it is safe, supportive and physcially connecting. Work can be both good and bad for our mental health and it is up to employers to work with employees to make work a positive experience for our mental health.
Mental health can affect our socialisation and decisions and Sam says it can impact our day to day lives including work. Mental health is a spectrum that we can move along, there are things we can do both inside and outside of the workplace to try and keep our mental health at the ""good"" part of the spectrum. Sam highlighted some of the pressures that can impact our mental health at work and mentioned that mental health at work is make up of home factors, work factors and personal characteristics which vary from person to person.
Sam discussed a stress graph and how stimulation can either be optimal for working, or too high where they can be strained, fatigued or broken down. Sam explored the impacts that this can have on mental health of individuals and how this can impact businesses, some alarming statistics were included.
Sam talked about the future of mental health at work and explored a variety of potential solutions ranging from personalised support and AI recommendatons to mood regulations and interventions. Organisations have to consider how to provide those recommendations and whether the employee wants to accept them.
Some key takeaways from the session:
• We should acknowledge the shifting boundary between work and the rest of life.
• Our relationships with work and working patterns are changing.
• While employers cannot provide everything, they can still encourage.
• Employers have mental health legal requirements that they must adhere to.
• Many groups of people can be more susceptible to mental health issues and employers should have an awareness of this.
• Holistic mental health in the workplace will be best practice of the future. They will be treated as an individual and will recognise both direct and indirect employees.
• The changing ways of working and employees life outside of work should be supported. The future of mental health will recognise the benefits of doing this to the organisation.