Mental Health Month - Raising Awareness for Mental Health Support

Mental Health Month – Raising Awareness for Mental Health Support

This month is Mental Health Month, so here at Homecarers, we want to draw attention to the importance of mental health support, and prioritising our mental wellbeing wherever we can.

In any given year, more than 1/5 people will experience poor mental health, so it is our job to challenge the stigma around mental health, and encourage those who are struggling to reach out.

What are we doing for Mental Health Month?

More recently, two members of staff from our Chester branch completed their Mental Health First Aid training, through The Care Workers Charity, conducted by Red Umbrella. They completed this training to gain their recognised qualifications as Mental Health First Aiders, meaning they are able to provide support and guidance to our workforce regarding mental health support, and signpost our staff who to contact for further support, such as The Care Workers Charity for free counselling sessions, and TELUS Health, who offer free wellbeing resources through our Employee Assistance Programme.

Here is what they had to say about the training they completed:

Hayley Burns – Regional HR Manager

“The training I have recently completed with Red Umbrella was really good and really interesting – it wasn’t just your typical training around mental health, it allowed me to develop my knowledge on different mental health conditions, not just depression and anxiety. I think everybody should do this training, as it really puts into perspective how important it is to have mental healt support in the workplace.”

Kate Morris – Graduate Operations Manager

“I thoroughly enjoyed the Mental Health First Aid training with Red Umbrella – although it was difficult and talked about a lot of sensitive topics within Mental Health, it was incredibly rewarding and I am glad I have received this training as I am now able to provide guidance and signpost our staff in regards to mental health support. I would recommend this training to anyone.”

Anna, our Regional HR & Training Officer, is also due to complete her training as a Mental Health First Aider – keep an eye on our socials to see hear about her experience with the training.

Why is Mental Health Month important?

Mental Health Month is important to ensure that we are challenging the stigma around different mental health conditions, and how common it is to suffer with poor mental health.

This month was organised by the Association of Mental Health back in 1949, with the goal of challenging the stigma and misconceptions around common mental health conditions, which are still believed by the general public, and mental health professionals. The aim of the campaign is to enhance public knowledge and consciousness of mental and emotional wellbeing.

Some common mental health conditions include:

Depression
Anxiety
Bipolar Disorder
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Multiple Personality Disorder
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Schizophrenia

Whilst dementia and anxiety are the two most common mental health conditions, other conditions are often overlooked and misunderstood. So, it is important that we are helping educate and inform the general public with correct information, including signs and symptoms of common mental health conditions. This is to ensure that mental health conditions, such as schizophrenia for example, is understood in a factual manner, and the spread of misinformation is reduced.

What other mental health support do we offer?

TELUS Health – Our Employee Assistance Programme offers 5 free counselling sessions to friends and family members, as well as a range of mental health and wellbeing resources to help you prioritise your mental health.
The Care Workers Charity – As supportive members, we always direct our colleagues to the CWC for a range of support – as well as their crisis grants, they also offer up to 10 free counselling sessions which can be either online or in-person, depending on the preferences of the individual.
Open Door Policy – At all of our branches, we ensure to have an open door policy at all times. This means that our workforce can approach us with any concerns they have, at any time of the day.