Supporting Mental Health: For Employers in Long- Term Care

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Supporting Mental Health:

For Employers in Long-

Term Care

Hosted by:

Courtney Patt Senior Health Management ConsultantMental Health First Aid Instructor

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC

Agenda

• Defining mental health and stats

• Supporting someone who lives with or is experiencing a mental health challenge

• Tools and resources that provide mental health awareness and support to employees

1


MMA book of business reveals anxiety is now

the #1 mental health diagnosis followed by depression.

Mental Health by the Numbers

1 in 5American adults report

having a mental illness.

After the stay-at-home

orders, widespread layoffs

and general anxiety about

the virus spread,

45% of adults reported their

mental health was

negatively affected.

67%of American workers

reported having

higher stress

since the COVID-19

outbreak.

41%of American workers with

adverse mental health

symptoms, increased

substance use disorder, or

suicidal ideation

during COVID-19.

Overdose counts

increased 45% in 2020; of

those, opioid overdoses

increased 29%

from pre pandemic.

45%


1. https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/report_1959/ShortReport-1959.html

2. https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/nationwide-trends

The prevalence of

substance use and

substance use

disorders

is not consistent

across industries

8.7% of full-time

workers used

alcohol heavily in

the past month1

Opioid misuse is

now the second

most prevalent form

of illicit substance

use after marijuana2

9.5% of full time

workers were

dependent on or

abused alcohol or illicit

drugs in the past year

Substance use disorders are associated with negative work behaviors such as absenteeism and

frequent job changes1

Substance Use in the Workplace


Source: 1. 2021: Statista, Impact of coronavirus pandemic on mental health. 2. Workplace Well-Being and the Employee Experience: Findings from the NBGH/Optum Well-being Survey, 2019.

The State of Mental Health Pre and Post Pandemic

Percentage of U.S. adults showing symptoms of

anxiety and/or depressive disorder1

9 out of 10Employers plan to address mental

health stigma and have concerns

with employee access to

behavioral health services2

8%7%

11%

28%

24%

34%

36.9%

30.2%

42.4%

Symptoms of anxietydisorder

Symptoms ofdepressive disorder

Symptoms of anxiety ordepressive disorder

Jan - June 2019 May 14-19, 2020 December 9-21, 2020


“Physician Burnout”. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. See also Brusie, C. “Study Reveals Alarming Statistics on Nurse Burnout,”Nurse.org, posted April 7, 2019 and Batcheldor, M. “Study Explores Burnout Among APRNs, Physician Assistants,”Vanderbilt University Medical Reporter, December 12, 2019.

The Toll of Chronic Stress on Providers:

Depression affects 1/3 of nurses

1 in 10 nurses is impaired or is in recovery

from alcohol or drug addiction

Nurses who work 12-hour shifts had worse health outcomes and

made more errors than peers who worked 8-10

hour shifts

12 female and 40 male nurses (per 100,000)

complete suicide each year vs. the general population of 7.6 for

female and 28.2 for male


Source: 2020 Mercer National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans.

Mental Health is a Top Priority for Employers in 2021

Employers with 500 or More Employees

39%

40%

48%

49%

75%

Physical activity

Nutrition/weight management

Financial well-being

Diabetes

Behavioral health

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC 7

HOW TO SUPPORT SOMEONE


Signs/symptoms of someone struggling

Behavior

• Withdrawing from family and friends

• Pattern of showing up late or cancelling commitments

• Absenteeism or “presenteeism”

• Odd or erratic behavior

Appearance

• Tired-looking

• Disheveled clothing

• Appearing more unkempt than usual

• Declining personal hygiene

• Cuts or bruises in various stages of healing


Signs/symptoms of someone struggling

Emotion

• No longer enjoying activities/hobbies/work

• Sadness, Worry, Hopelessness

• Anger/rage

Thoughts

• Difficulty concentrating – home, school or work

• Indecisiveness

• Racing or mind going blank

• Increase self-blame


Be A Mental Health Advocate

Understand the effects of mental health disorders

Use first person language

Cut out offensive slang

Be supportive

Listen

Eye contact

Positive body language

Acknowledge what was heard

Connect to help and know your role


Starting the Conversation

Sources: Make it Ok makeitok.org/what-to-say/

Mental Health First Aid /www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/2018/06/5-

tips-conversation-mental-health/

Questions to ASK

I’ve noticed you’ve been more quiet than

usual in our meetings, tell me more about

how work is going for you.

I’ve noticed you ______ . How are you

feeling?

I know ________ (acknowledge something

that is happening in their life). Anything you

want to talk about?

How are you doing at the moment?

Is there anything I can do to help?

Questions to AVOID

You’re clearly struggling. What’s up?

Why can’t you just get your act together?

What do you expect me to do about it?

Your performance is really unacceptable right

now – what is going on?

Everyone else is in the same boat and they’re

okay. Why aren’t you?

Who do you expect to pick up all the work that

you can’t manage?

https://makeitok.org/what-to-say/

https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/2018/06/5-tips-conversation-mental-health/


What if someone doesn’t want support?

• Let them know you are always there to support

them

• You may not be the right person to have the

conversation

• Check in with them again in the future, now may

not be the time

TOOLS AND RESOURCES


Scan the QR code

to access the NSC

Calculator website:

What is the impact of the mental health of your

employees?

• The National Safety Council has a free tool that

demonstrates the cost of employee mental health and

illness for employers.

• Provides specific information about the cost of mental

health based on the size of employee base, industry,

and state.

Mental Health Cost Resources


For example, a health

services company

with 100 employees

in Wisconsin




The Center for Workplace Mental Health also has a cost calculator to help you better understand the potential impact on

your company.

Mental Health Cost Resources

Scan the QR code

to access the

Calculator website:


For example, a

health services

company with

100 employees

in Wisconsin


• Involve your data partner

• Review Employee Assistance Program (EAP) utilization

• Review Medical claims

– ER visits for behavioral health

– Pharmacy spend

Making data driven decisions:Understand your behavioral health trend

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC 21

STRATEGIES FOR MENTAL HEALTH IN THE

WORKPLACE


Source: HERO Employee Mental Health and Well-being: Emerging Best Practices and Case Study Examples. September 2020.

Strategies for Positive Mental Health in the Workplace

Raise awareness about the

importance of mental

health and well-being.

Manage psychosocial

risks related to work,

environment, and culture:

• Employee involvement

• Employee recognition

• Employee growth and development

• Work-life integration

• Healthy work environment

• Health and psychological safety

Assess mental health and

well-being needs and

measure intervention

impact.

Partner with local and

national organizations

to extend and share

mental health and

well-being practices.

Integrate mental health

and well-being into a

comprehensive wellness

program inclusive of:

Provide and promote

access to evidence-based,

high quality mental health

care:

• Promote mental health care access

options

• Increase equitable and timely access to

evidence-based mental health care

6 Workplace Mental Health and Well-being Best Practices

• Emotional

• Environmental

• Spiritual

• Financial

• Intellectual

• Occupational

• Physical

• Social


Build a Caring Culture

Remove the

stigma Make time

to listen

Give

employees

ways to

de-stress

Be

transparent

Establish

quiet spaces Offer benefits

that support

mental health

Implement a

mental health

company

initiative


Mental Health ResourcesMMA Solution Spectrum

MMA has in-house resources to help employers and employees navigate the spectrum of solutions and vendors available.

Sourcing and referring

quality programs and

education available

publically.

Public Domain

Reviewed and vetted point solution vendors that offer

sub-clinical, clinical, and crisis specific program

offerings.

Point Solutions (fee-based)

Tapping into all the

available carrier

resources that

compliment your

current plan offerings.

Carrier / EAP

Virtual and onsite

training to support

employers with skills

to respond to

employee mental

health needs.

Leadership

Training

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC

Mental Health First Aid Training

• Interactive training course builds skills to support how to

use your MHFA training skills in the real world to

identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental

challenges and substance use disorders.

• 6.5-hour virtual certification class (with 2 hours of pre-

work)

• Visit https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/ to locate a

local training course OR work with your local Health

Management Consultant to schedule group training with

our MMA trainers.Scan the QR

code to access

the MHFA

website:

https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/


Mental Health Communications ToolkitUpdated for Mental Health Awareness Month

Support your employees’ mental and emotional well-being.

• Topics include:

– Depression.

– Anxiety.

– Stress.

– Sleep disorders.

– Substance abuse.

– New! Resilience.

– Know where to go.

• Directs employees to:

– Behavioral healthcare.

– Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

– Public resources.

To access the Mental Health Toolkit, click

https://mma.marshmma.com/ntl_mental_health_toolkit

Scan the QR code

to access the MMA

MH Toolkit:

https://mma.marshmma.com/ntl_mental_health_toolkit


https://www.mhawisconsin.org/ https://mhanational.org/

Scan the QR code

to access MHA

website:

https://www.mhawisconsin.org/

https://mhanational.org/


NAMI Wisconsin

https://www.nami.org/home

https://www.namiwisconsin.org

Scan the QR code

to access NAMI

website:

https://www.nami.org/home

https://www.namiwisconsin.org/



Questions

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Supporting Mental Health: For Employers in Long- Term Care