Looking behind the label

Mental ill-health in the workplace

Verity Westgate | Research Coordinator | University of Oxford

Together with a colleague I have been delivering training about mental ill health in the workplace since 2016 and have now trained over 300 members of staff across our institution.  As someone who has struggled with various forms of mental-ill health throughout my working life, I am passionate about using my experiences to help people understand what life is like in the workplace if you struggle with your mental health.  Only half of people with mental ill-health have taken time off work as a result and therefore it is likely that there are many people within our institutions who are continuing to work despite their difficulties.  The working environment and the support that is provided by managers and colleagues can make a really big difference to how well people can cope, and I want to share ideas and learn from other people about best practice in this area.

I am hoping that by delivering this session at the AUA conference I can empower attendees to think about ways in which they might support individuals with mental ill-health in the workplace.  It will give us the chance to think about issues which are often a taboo subject and increase our confidence in talking about it.

204: Looking behind the label is a working session at the AUA Annual Conference and Exhibition 2020. In these mini blogs, our session speakers talk about the journey that lead to this point. Read the full Conference programme here.