Mental Health and Wellness Programs in Workplace

Running head: MENTAL HEALTH IN WORKPLACE
MENTAL HEALTH IN WORKPLACE
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1MENTAL HEALTH IN WORKPLACE
Part 1
The components of a mental health and wellness program include the vision and
mission statements. The next components id the goal of the program. These goals are realistic
in nature reflecting the needs of both the employees and the management. Object is another
component which like the goals is involved in the provision of specifications of steps and
actions taken in order to accomplish the goals that are set by the organization in terms of
mental health and wellness programs (Arena et al., 2013). Another component is the timeline
take it planned in accordance to the set objectives and the goals. This is then time that would
be required of implementation the programs and for the evaluation of the program. Often the
budget is also one of the identified components of such programs. One of the key components
is the communication plan which is required to increase the employee awareness regarding
the program. The operation plan of the program should be involved in driving participation of
the employees of the organization (Cawley & Price, 2013). The communication methods
might involve the employees in the process of planning and implementation. It might also
thrive to involve the president of the company in order to encourage employee participation.
Digital media like emails, internet postings and other like the company newsletters and the
bulletin boards can be used in order to spread awareness. The implementation plan is most
important component of this program as it provided detailed information about the initiatives
taken for the workplace wellness. This will make the individuals responsible for the
responsibilities making them associated with the offering of the program. Finally another key
component is the evaluation plan. This helps in analysing that how well is the wellness
program working. It also evaluates the rate of participation and the participant evaluation
using the appropriate evaluation tools (Baxter et al., 2014).
The organizations searched for this study comprises of the St. Joseph’s Healthcare
Hamilton, Delta Hotels and Rodale. The organizations have been involved in using two

2MENTAL HEALTH IN WORKPLACE
mindfulness-based interventions with effective participation of all its employees along with
frontline health-care workers and also its leaders. The results of this wellness programs
depicted that the programs helped to significantly decrease depression and anxiety in its
workers along with work stress and helped to increase the focus on empathy towards oneself
and towards others. Using the results obtained after the conduction of this mental health and
wellness program the organisation also involved in the implementation of an employee and
family assistance program (EAP) (Richard, 2014). Additionally there were interventions like
the drug plan and the extended reports of absence. Through these programs the organization
was successful in encouraging the staff in seeking ways that were informal in nature in order
to apply mindfulness using the mind, spirit and the body. The strategies of EAP included the
conduction of wellness school seminars on issues such as resiliency, being well during the
shift work and providing successful transition to retirement. Additionally there are provisions
of fitness classes for the complimentary groups; along with the promotion of transportation to
work actively through bike rack locations. Provisions of outdoor spaces such as a spiritual
garden and labyrinth is present. From the introduction of its wellness strategies, the
organization St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton has seen increases in its response rates to its
employee engagement surveys. Additionally there is increase in employee participation in the
wellness program year-over-year. This has shown a 14.7 per cent decrease in claims of long-
term disability in terms of musculoskeletal injuries along with a 31-day decrease in average
days which are lost (St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton. (2018).
The Delta Hotels and Resorts in Toronto is one of the companies that has
implemented the mental health and wellness programs for its employees. It has been
commitment to engaging its employees and not only in satisfaction. According to Delta, there
is a difference in engagement and satisfaction. The engagement focuses on the effects more
than the benefits of productivity along with responsibility and a sense of accountability.