Last month, leaders and influencers gathered in Davos for the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting. But this year, DAVOS had an unprecedented focus on mental health with a belief that employers have a vital role in promoting mentally healthy societies and workplaces. This public recognition of mental health as a boardroom issue makes it good business – as well as moral – sense.
Poor mental health already costs the world $2.5trillion in lost productivity. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 300 million suffer from depression globally. Depression is the world’s leading cause of disability and it contributes to 800,000 suicides per year, the majority of which occur in developing countries. According to WHO, fewer than half of those affected globally and in some countries fewer than 10% are receiving treatment. Moreover, depression has a major impact on people in their most productive years. Billions of people spend much of their life at work so employers can play a huge part in promoting and improving mental health. Treating mental health is also a matter of economic growth. According to WHO, for every US$ invested in depression and anxiety, there is a return of US$4 – a 300% net profit.
Dr Dixon Chibanda, a psychiatrist from Zimbabwe was one of the DAVOS attendee and a panelist on mental health with a game-changing idea, as the creator of the Friendship Bench Program, which trains community members to help people with mental health conditions navigate their problems through talking them through. The Friendship Bench uses benches as a form of therapy for people who are struggling with mental health or emotional problems. The benches are located in designated places and each bench has a trained member who counsels people struggling with mental health issues. Generally people are embarrassed of going to see a therapist when they are depressed or needing someone to talk to because of the stigma attached to depression and “madness”. But the bench idea is proving beneficial as the trained members are from the same communities. Studies prove that the program is effective in treating mental illness and significantly reduces anxiety and depression.
The Friendship Bench project that started in Zimbabwe has now been mirrored in several places, including Zanzibar, Malawi, India, the Caribbean, UK, USA, Canada, where permanent and mobile benches are being installed in public places, health facilities, schools, universities. New York City has set up its own Friendship Benches and frequently consults with Dr Chibanda. People seeking assistance can talk anonymously with trained community members and peer counselors who provide support and refer them to resources where they can get help. The evidence-based replication uses Zimbabwean training manuals as a resource for training community members.
Work is often vital to our sense of self worth. Given how workplaces shape wellbeing, businesses can play a huge part in promoting and improving mental health by providing basic training to key personnel and alleviating stigma against seeking help for mental well-being. The mental health movement is gaining traction and cannot succeed without leadership and support from the private sector.