Preventing mental disorders and promoting mental health in the workplace

Mental health problems, of which depression a paradigmatic example, are an increasing concern. Despite the generalization of mental health care in our environment, the incidence of depression continues to grow and it is now one of the leading causes of disability. Globally, its estimated cost is one trillion dollars per year, mainly due to decreased productivity from work absenteeism.¹

Most mental health care is carried out in clinical settings, which limits early detection and the possibility of acting on the incidence of mental conditions. Thus, early intervention strategies are needed in the fields of prevention (primary and secondary) and mental health promotion. The work environment is considered the ideal place for these activities¹ since the general population spends a large part of their time there.

According to the World Health Organization, intensifying mental health care in the general population will result in a high economic return: for every dollar invested in depression and anxiety four dollars are saved, mainly through increased productivity at work.¹ Intervention costs could be shared with the private sector, since companies will be interested in the economic return.

Workplace interventions can impact work performance, which is a central domain of mental health promotion² and is affected by workload, lack of participation and control, monotonous and unpleasant tasks, poor interpersonal relationships, precarious working conditions, and lack of leadership and communication.¹ A number of interventions have been found to effectively reduce depressive symptoms and prevent their onset.³,⁴ They involve different formats (individual, group, self-administered, face-to-face, or telematic) and content (psychoeducation, exercise promotion, and psychological therapies). However, further research is needed to determine which have the best results. Professional care in the workplace also allows early detection of mental disorders and referral for treatment.

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and due to its impact on the mental health of the working population, telehealth interventions may allow safer and more inexpensive interventions. A recent meta-analysis⁵ found that the mental health of health care workers has been especially affected, and thus this group is of particular interest. One in four health professionals have suffered significant depressive symptoms during the pandemic, and more than one in three are suffering from burnout.⁵ Other symptoms include insomnia, anxiety and post-traumatic features. They are being prioritized in public health policies.

In conclusion, interventions to prevent mental disorders and promote mental health in the workplace are cost-effective and could decrease the incidence of depression and reduce work absenteeism. During the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth interventions for health professionals are highly important.

Acknowledgements

CA has been supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation; Instituto de Salud Carlos III (SAM16PE07CP1, PI16/02012, PI19/024), co-financed by ERDF Funds from the European Commission, “A way of making Europe,” CIBERSAM; Madrid Regional Government (B2017/BMD-3740 AGES-CM-2), European Union Structural Funds, European Union Seventh Framework Program under grant agreements FP7-4-HEALTH-2009-2.2.1-2-241909 (Project EU-GEI), FP7-HEALTH-2013-2.2.1-2-603196 (Project PSYSCAN), and FP7-HEALTH-2013-2.2.1-2-602478 (Project METSY); and European Union H2020 Program under the Innovative Medicines Initiative 2 Joint Undertaking (grant agreement No 115916, Project PRISM, and grant agreement No 777394, Project AIMS-2-TRIALS); Fundación Familia Alonso and Fundación Alicia Koplowitz.

References

• ¹
  World Health Organization (WHO). Mental health and substance use: mental health in the workplace. 2022 Jan. www.who.int/teams/mental-health-and-substance-use/mental-health-in-the-workplace
  » www.who.int/teams/mental-health-and-substance-use/mental-health-in-the-workplace
• ²
  Fusar-Poli P, Salazar de Pablo G, De Micheli A, Nieman DH, Correll CU, Kessing LV, et al. What is good mental health? A scoping review. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol. 2020;31:33-46.
• ³
  Bellón J, Conejo-Cerón S, Cortés-Abela C, Pena-Andreu JM, García-Rodríguez A, Moreno-Peral P. Effectiveness of psychological and educational interventions for the prevention of depression in the workplace: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2019;45:324-32.
• ⁴
  Nigatu YT, Huang J, Rao S, Gillis K, Merali Z, Wang J. Indicated prevention interventions in the workplace for depressive symptoms: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Am J Prev Med. 2019;56:e23-e33.
• ⁵
  Salazar de Pablo G, Vaquerizo-Serrano J, Catalan A, Arango C, Moreno C, Ferre F, et al. Impact of coronavirus syndromes on physical and mental health of health care workers: systematic review and meta-analysis. J Affect Disord. 2020;275:48-57.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  19 Aug 2022
• Date of issue
  Jul-Aug 2022

History

• Received
  08 Jan 2022
• Accepted
  24 Jan 2022