The theme for this year’s World Mental Health Day is ‘Mental health is a universal human right’, the acknowledgement that positive mental health is for every single human being without judgement or stigma. Mental health is not only relevant for individuals with a formal diagnosis of a condition, our mental health extends to our ability ‘to cope with the stresses of life, learn well, work well and contribute to the community.’ (World Health Organisation (WHO) 2023)
Mental health awareness has reached greater heights over the years, with far more emphasis on creating positive social care environments and experiences for our service users. What about our staff? It is not always easy for people to reveal that they are struggling. Sometimes people are unaware that they are mentally or emotionally drowning and finding matters difficult. In social care, we come across individuals from all walks of life with various personality types and, as professionals, we endeavour not to allow these factors to affect us. This is by far the largest challenge.
In England, the CQC’s implementation of the CQC Single Assessment framework has highlighted the significance of workforce wellbeing and enablement.
‘We care about and promote the wellbeing of our staff, and we support and enable them to always deliver person centred care’
Although this is not an entirely new concept, many providers do care about their staff, it’s simply that now it requires focus and evidence. Life in social care is extremely rewarding, meaningful and satisfying. Nonetheless, it is also busy, unpredictable, and definitely has its challenges. It is not always easy to sustain focus on the wellbeing of staff when you have multiple setbacks, without clear internal mechanisms in place.
At QCS we have had numerous requests from customers for staff wellbeing resources and assessments in the last year. You have asked, and we have listened. We have compiled a suite of resources that you can implement that concentrate on staff wellbeing and happiness at work. By providing your team with chances to focus and notice how they feel and respond to situations in the workplace, you will create conditions that offer useful debriefs and impactful connections. These opportunities will not only aid you in creating a positive workplace culture where staff feel valued and supported, they will also provide evidence that you care as an organisation about the welfare of your employees and take an active role in connecting with staff.
Some of our products include:
- Individual Wellbeing Assessment
- Individual Wellbeing Assessment Follow Up
- Checklist to promote wellbeing and positive culture in the workplace
Focusing on developing a positive workplace culture will most certainly create a far more upbeat and progressive team. Staff who are happy in the workplace are far less likely to leave for pastures new.
Mental health is a universal human right and in England, the CQC has recognised how important this is for our industry.
World Mental Health Day is on 10th October 2023.
