Companies urged to strengthen mental health support for workers

CEBU, Philippines — Prioritize mental health in the workplace.

This was the message during the two-day Mental Health Partners' Summit in Cebu City organized by Americares Philippines, which had several sectors express its commitment to addressing mental health issues, particularly of workers.

Americares Philippines, established post-Typhoon Yolanda in 2013, is a humanitarian service organization that has been instrumental in promoting mental health initiatives across the country.

With over 100 participants from the public health sector and civic organizations across regions 3, 7, 8, and 13, key speakers and experts were able to share the pressing need of improving mental health conditions in workplaces.

Americares Philippines Country Director Paul Gwyn Pagaran said that they see the growing demand for training, workshops, and seminars focused on mental health and stress management.

On the other hand, he shared that increased awareness has empowered workers to seek knowledge and support for mental health issues.

Dr. Maria Jecyl Radam, the psychiatrist consultant of Americares Philippines, shared her experiences with patients facing mental health struggles in their work environments, wherein she has seen patients on their working stages that are going through depression, anxiety, or any other mental health conditions.

“This needs to be addressed because the economic cost in their life (and) their families, they will be absent for awhile then meaning, there’s no pay in absences in some of the companies,” she said.

Radam further explained that workplace stressors often carry over into personal lives, affecting overall well-being for which she underscored the need for organizations to implement mental health breaks and support systems for employees.

In recent years though, she said some companies and organizations have been implementing the mental health break for their workers.

Seminars and trainings for employees are also introduced that help build lesser stigma on the matter of mental health.

“Through the years, I have seen lesser stigma in mental health. Although there’s still a stigma, it’s less compared to previous years,” said Radam.

Pagaran also agreed that supervisors and managers have a huge role to play to help identify workers who are in dire need of early detection and treatment.

Further, Americares has reported an uptick in consultations, attributed to years of community education, health worker training, and the establishment of mental health centers.

He said that the rise in consultations does not necessarily indicate heightened stress levels but rather reflects improved awareness of available treatments and support options.

In their project level, the number of individuals seeking help was low due to a lack of understanding about mental health care.

As local health workers became better trained, community awareness increased, leading to more individuals seeking support at rural health units (RHUs).

“Once we already chained the health workers locally, then the awareness has gone up. That’s why we see the increased number of consultations at the rural health units (RHU). That is the reason as to why the improved detection and case finding at the community level,” said Pagaran.

Meanwhile, apart from discussions during the summer, 12 local government units were awarded in their collaboration in the implementation of mental health initiatives in the communities, as well as individuals who pioneered the mobilization of mental health programs in Cebu Province.

Other than that, four media outlets that served as channels to increase the awareness of individuals on mental health were recognized.

The Freeman was awarded a plaque of recognition from Americares Philippines for its exceptional contribution to promoting mental health and well-being within the community. News Editor Fred Languido accepted the award on behalf of the publication.

Americares Philippines acknowledged that The Freeman has been at the forefront of mental health advocacy, using its platform to raise awareness on critical issues on mental health and enhancing public awareness of mental health's significance. (CEBU NEWS)