TPi_Magazine__February_2018

PSA: THE BIGGER PICTURE
we’re happy to lend an ear. Is that passive approach enough when so
many don’t feel comfortable with sharing the real issue? Perhaps we
could get better at spotting the signs, become more effective at opening
the conversation rather than waiting for the call; maybe populating our
industry with people who can approach,
talk, listen and signpost people to seek the
help they need - there’s a lot of it out there.
Sometimes, a person suffering from mental
illness doesn’t want to bother a friend or
colleague with their troubles - a more active
approach may be needed.
Of course, there’s an answer. It’s called
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA), and it’s a
thing. To become a Mental Health First Aider,
you need to attend a 2-day training course.
Companies can and should have MHFA
trained staff as part of their commitment to
improving their approach. This, though, is
where we run into a slight issue: we’re not all
about employers and employees, we have
a huge proportion of self-employed people,
put together in teams to work on various
events. Many of those individuals are in a
supervisory or management position and
could benefit from MHFA training. Of course,
training costs money - in this case, up to
£300. To soften the blow, Stagehand, the
industry charity set up by PSA members over
20 years ago, has committed to subsidising
MHFA training for up to 100 self-employed
members, offering 50% of the cost on proof
of completion of the 2-day course; a serious
commitment that has itself been subsidised
by a significant donation from the PSA’s
reserves.
Of course, the administration of first aid
means that there’s a problem to address.
Physical damage can be caused in the
“Accidents in the workplace also
cause injury, employers apply
resources to reduce the likelihood
of those accidents; our sector has
worked extremely hard on reducing
physical injury, addressing the
causes. Can the same be said for
mental wellbeing?”
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workplace, mental wellbeing is no different. I could break my leg skiing and
bring that injury into the workplace; I’d hope my employers would support
me through recovery. Mental ill health can be caused by factors outside
work too. Same applies. Accidents in the workplace also cause injury,
employers apply resources to reduce the
likelihood of those accidents; our sector has
worked extremely hard on reducing physical
injury, addressing the causes. Can the same
be said for mental wellbeing? Prevention is
better than cure and we perhaps need to
have a good look at ourselves, perhaps risk
assess our working environment, just as we
should for physical hazards.
We don’t yet have the answers and
different people handle things in different
ways, but night working, long days, long
periods away from home, lack of sleep, lack
of job security, periods of unemployment,
they’re all prevalent and all potential causes
of mental ill health. The pledge and the
training are simple first steps, but only by
developing the conversation can we fully
address the causes.
And that flu? I’m over it now and still
trying to catch up. I think I’m handling the
stress OK.
Interested In Mental Health First Aid Training?
Self Employed PSA members can claim back
50% of training costs. Email gm@psa.org.uk
for details.
TPi
www.psa.org.uk
www.time-to-change.org.uk/get-involved/
get-your-workplace-involved/employerpledge
www.mhfaengland.org
www.smhfa.com
www.mhfa-wales.org