There’s a new online tool to help employers improve mental health in the workplace. “Managing Emotions” was developed by mental health researchers and commissioned by the Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace; it provides an assessment of emotional intelligence in the workplace. Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to deal with other […]
The Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health (CAMIMH) will kick off Mental Illness Awareness Week on Oct. 2. The annual event, established in 1992 by the Canadian Psychiatric Association, is dedicated to raising awareness of mental illness in Canada, reducing the stigma associated with mental health issues and promoting best practices in prevention, […]
For more than 10 years, Karen Liberman was crippled by a clinical depression so severe that she would sometimes spend 24 hours crying. “I was barely surviving it, yet I continued to work the whole time I was desperately ill,” she recalls. In the summer of 1997, Liberman was hospitalized by her psychiatrist for 48 […]
Most Canadians are unable to afford psychological care, says a recent EKOS survey conducted on behalf of the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA). The survey found that the high cost of psychological services means Canadians, particularly those in lower and middle income levels, face significant barriers when it comes to treating mental illness. For Canadians who […]
Canadian employees are too in debt to think about retirement planning. That’s the implication from a recent report by Morneau Shepell, which shows more workers are accessing their employee assistance programs (EAPs) for debt and credit issues, but fewer are seeking help with investment planning. According to the report, 63.2% of the time that people […]
Mental health is on the radar of Canadian organizations. Numerous studies have been conducted on the occurrence of and costs associated with mental health issues. The unfortunate reality is that people are often not provided with the care they need, even though early intervention is a key factor in helping people address and treat mental […]
One of the biggest potential upsides to containing costs through an optimally designed plan is that plan sponsors then have the budget to ensure better health for their members. Let’s consider the case of a common source of absenteeism, short-term disability and long-term disability in the workplace: depression. What’s frightening is how common both mild […]
The Face to Face Disability Management Forum, held on May 25, 2011, at Toronto’s Fairmont Royal York Hotel, brought together more than 100 plan sponsors, group insurers, benefits consultants, pharmaceutical representatives and other stakeholders to discuss effective disability management strategies. Read Part 1 of our coverage. Chronic pain is one of the most common causes […]
Reader Alert: This is Part 1 in a two-part series. Read Part 2. Addiction, mental illness, unhealthy lifestyles…employee disability can stem from a number of causes. Workplace absences related to these disabilities place a significant burden on Canadian employers, accounting for an estimated 4% to 12% of payroll costs, according to 2002 research from Wilson, Joffe […]
Stress, anxiety, depression and poor social support may be hampering employees’ efforts to achieve wellness goals, says a recent report by employee assistance program (EAP) provider ComPsych Corporation. According to the report, employees suffering from poor emotional health are less likely to adopt healthy lifestyle changes. “There is strong correlation between high stress/emotional issues and […]