9 October 2024
10 October is World Mental Health Day. The theme this year is mental health in the workplace. The theme highlights the importance of addressing mental health and wellbeing in the workplace for the benefit of people, organisations and communities.
Work can have a huge impact on our mental health. It can be good for our mental health, giving us a sense of purpose, boosting our self-worth, and providing opportunities to connect with others. It can also be a source of stress and anxiety and contribute to developing or worsening mental health problems.
We are calling on organisations in the Borders to take the following steps to support the mental health of their employees:
- Use Healthy Working Lives to see what you can do to support the health and wellbeing of your employees
- Sign up to our local Creating Hope in the Scottish Borders Awards Scheme for mentally healthy and suicide safer communities nhsborders.scot.nhs.uk/creating-hope/creating-hope-awards/
- If you have an employee who needs support to stay in or return to work, they may be able to access help from a local Working Health Services Scotland adviser
Steph Mackenzie, Health Improvement Specialist at NHS Borders said: “Many people spend a lot of their time working and that’s why it’s so important that our workplace supports our mental health, helping us get the mental health benefits of work while reducing the negative impact.
“There are plenty of resources available to support mental health and wellbeing at work, you can find more information on the NHS Borders website.”
Find information on all local resources available here: nhsborders.scot.nhs.uk/creating-hope/resources/workplaces/
If you or someone you know is struggling with their mental health, help is available. Find more information here: www.nhsborders.scot.nhs.uk/creating-hope/help-yourself-and-others/