Broken Systems, Tired Workers

Trained frontline workers are taught in their training that they must be prepared to "see anything" and to do so without being affected by it. With this mindset, it's no wonder why there is a steady increase of first responders, healthcare providers, and military staff that have mental illness or trauma related experiences.

According to the Centre for Mental Health and Addictions, approximately 1 in 5 Canadians experiences a mental illness and in a survey conducted in 2019 of working Canadians, 75% of the respondents stated that they would be reluctant- or would refuse- to disclose a mental illness to an employer or co-worker.

That is an astounding statistic...

What if that statistic were narrowed down to police officers, firefighters, paramedics, healthcare workers, doctors, therapists, teachers, and military personnel? That statistic would probably be even higher because of the "suck it up" mentality that stigmatizes every single one of these professions.

In each of these professions, burnout rates are increasing at a rapid rate. As a healthcare professional myself, I watch as the nurses around me all continuously pick up extra shifts or work so much extra overtime. I watch as the new generation of nurses enters into nursing, and watch how quickly they get burnt out.

The police officers, firefighters and teachers that I know experience the same things. Increased work and responsibilities, decreased support from the workplace, and increased burnout, with added mental health problems from stress.

What if there were a way to change the stigma and encourage the dynamic of being open about mental health? What if you could call in to work for a mental health day without feeling guilty for needing a day to take care of your own mental well being? That would be an incredible change.

Starting with small steps, like holding small virtual workshops, and partnering with other mental health advocates.. we can change the stigma.

It is a big change that needs to happen within the system, but it is a change that we can conquer together. All it takes is one person to speak up!

What are some things that you can do within your workplace that can enhance the wellbeing of yourself and of coworkers? Is there someone you can talk to, or confide in? Is there ways your team can work together to come up with coping strategies?

In my next blog post, I will be working on gathering some information on reducing stress in the workplace; especially related to traumatic experiences, or difficult experiences.

Thank you for reading, I hope you truly enjoy your day and find some happiness in whatever may be going on in your life! :)