It is not enough to raise awareness among youth on mental health issues, but they should be taught how and when to get help in times of  distress. For workers, some government funding and leadership may help incentivise employers so that they may take steps to support the mental well-being of their employees.

These were some of the points raised by mental health practitioners and business leaders who spoke to TODAY in response to initial recommendations laid out by a national task force to enhance people’s mental well-being.

They would also like public conversations on the topic to go beyond the listed proposals and cover areas such as suicide prevention, even though public engagement has been going on since the multi-agency task force was formed last July.

WHAT ELSE IS NEEDED AT THE WORKPLACE

Mental health practitioners told TODAY that although they have seen more enquiries by companies regarding employee assistance programmes that offer counselling services since the Covid-19 pandemic hit, not as many employers have signed up with such programmes.

These programmes are usually put up by corporations for employees to get counselling and referrals when they have any mental or emotional issues that may be affecting their performance in the workplace.

Dr Joel Yang, clinical psychologist at Mind What Matter, a consultancy of counsellors, therapists and psychologists, said that there were various reasons for employers’ hesitance and a tight budget was definitely one of them.

Dr Geraldine Tan, principal registered psychologist at The Therapy Room, which offers psychological services for adults and children, said that such resistance would hinder efforts to make available employee assistance programmes, particularly for start-ups and small- and medium-sized enterprises.

“They need a little bit of help from the Government, because in truth, in order to start up a company, finances are very tight. So there's only so much that such companies can allocate (to mental well-being programmes),” Dr Tan said.

The Singapore Counselling Centre, the counselling division of the Academy of Certified Counsellors, said that offering such programmes in phases is one possible way to navigate funding issues.

Mr Mayank Parekh, chief executive officer of the Institute for Human Resource Professionals, pointed to other ways to support employees' mental health, such as providing time-off and flexible working arrangements.

“It’s not just the big companies that can do this, it’s something small companies can do in their own ways,” Mr Mayank said.

However, even for companies that do offer employee assistance programmes, some see that their staff members do not use it often, counsellors said.

Ms Anthea Ong, former Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) and a mental health advocate, said that this demonstrates the need to stop viewing employee assistance programmes like a silver bullet and to address the underlying culture and stigma in society.

“Because the employee assistance programmes come from the human resources department, from the company, the employee might think, ‘What if I get (negatively) marked and my career progression will be an issue?’”

Ms Peta Latimer, chief executive officer of Mercer Singapore, a consultancy that advises on investments and employee benefits, said that one way is for leaders to show their own vulnerability to signal that it is okay to reach out for help.

Mercer itself provides mental well-being programmes for its workers. It also takes a serious, long-term commitment from the top leadership to ensure the right tone and culture permeates the organisation to all employees.

As a leader would put energy into the business to deliver the desired outcomes, it would be the same with mental health outcomes, Ms Latimer said.

Mental health practitioners and business leaders said that a legislative approach may be too blunt a tool to get otherwise unconvinced employers to join such initiatives.

However, there is yet one way the authorities can effect change.

Ms Shilpa Jain, co-founder of counselling platform Talk Your Heart Out, said: “The Government is the biggest employer here. If it takes the lead — like how it did with the five-day work week calendar long ago — and normalises having a proper mental well-being programme, others will start to follow suit.”

WHY SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT A PERFECT BUFFER FOR YOUTH

On recommendations aimed at the youth, such as encouraging healthy use of social media among this group, the experts said that it may not yield the best outcome.

Dr Yang from Mind What Matter said; “There is a limit to how much a social media post, or a podcast, can help. Perhaps in a moment of distress, it may alleviate it a little, but effort must be put in to ensure they get the relevant help.”

Ms Shilpa said that awareness of mental health issues is generally high among younger age groups, with content touching on such topics already found in abundance online. What is needed is proper mental health literacy.

“Information on social media, they’re not necessarily moderated or verified. So there are risks of teenagers misdiagnosing themselves or end up not getting proper support because they do know what are the real signs to look for to show they need help,” she added.

The Singapore Counselling Centre said that as recommended by the task force, developing a toolbox for parents to equip them with mental health knowledge is a good step, so that they may then encourage the young to seek help if needed.

The centre added: “Living in a fast-paced society, parents in the working-class face work stresses and time constraints.

“When it comes to their children, though, many parents are often willing to carve out time to be equipped to support their children — especially if they suspect that their child is going through some level of distress.”

Dr Tan from The Therapy Room highlighted that the scope of such a toolbox is not immediately clear at this stage, but she hopes that a strong emphasis to dispel the stigma over mental illness held by parents will be a part of it.

This is because, as noted by the health experts, despite having some level of knowledge and awareness, parents who are judgemental and hold on to the stigma in seeing mental health disorders as socially discrediting behaviour may still be reluctant to encourage their children to seek appropriate help when needed.

ROOM FOR MORE INTERVENTIONS

Commenting further on the recommendations by the national task force, Ms Ong the former NMP said that she is delighted by the public consultation effort, but noted that the proposals do not at all touch on suicide prevention — an omission she described as “glaring”.

It was revealed last year that the number of suicides here reached an eight-year high of 452 in 2020, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.

She hopes that discussions will not be limited by the set of recommendations and that the task force would consider other ideas, such as setting up of a permanent mental health office, which she had mentioned before in Parliament.

As for the costs of treating mental illness, the health experts who spoke to TODAY acknowledged that clinical services are not cheap, as private practitioners have to cover significant costs. Subsidies and insurance coverage for patients are also limited.

However, Dr Tan from The Therapy Room said that this should not deter someone who needs support from reaching out and exploring all the options available.

“Places such as Family Service Centres provide (non-clinical) counselling at a nominal fee. Schools and more companies, too, are partnering counselling centres to provide help.”

Source:
courtesy of TODAY

by TAUFIQ ZALIZAN

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