Continuing Education courses respond to need for mental wellness in the workplace

The research and data speak for itself: It’s imperative to have a strategy in the workplace to promote psychological health and prevent psychological harm.

According to the Canadian Mental Health Association:

• 500,000 Canadians, in any given week, are unable to work due to mental health problems
• One in three workplace disability claims are related to mental illness
• 70 per cent of disability costs are attributed to mental illness.

University of Calgary research in the area of workplace aggression, incivility and bullying, conducted by Dr. Sandy Hershcovis, PhD, a professor of organizational behaviour at the Haskayne School of Business, explores the reactions experienced by someone when they witness another person being mistreated. Her research results show how even small gestures can have a big impact. Learning how to respond to bullying in the workplace can be life-changing.

Enter University of Calgary Continuing Education.

Continuing Education offers courses such as assertiveness training, having difficult conversations, gaining emotional intelligence, effectively managing stress, and coping in a toxic workplace. These are just a handful of courses available in the Mental Health and Psychology program area.

“The courses we offer in mental health and psychology are for employees at any level in an organization,” says Dr. Sheila LeBlanc, DBA, Continuing Education director. “But the leaders set the tone. It starts at the top.”

Collaborating with Homewood Health, a Canadian mental health and addiction services provider and UCalgary’s EAP partner, Continuing Education offers Leadership Strategies for Supporting Workplace Mental Health. This quick, online course covers the foundational skills needed to identify and appropriately respond to workplace mental health issues.

The course instructor, Dr. Colleen Lucas, PhD, works with organizations to create psychologically healthy and safe workplaces. “People are experiencing a lot of stress and uncertainty right now, which can take a huge toll on an individual.” She goes on to say, “Not all supervisors know how to recognize and respond when their employees are struggling with mental health concerns.

“Supervisors who take the Continuing Education course will learn the skills to recognize the signs of mental health problems and determine which strategies to use to support their employees.”

Mental health and psychology courses start as soon as Feb. 1. Register today and take a step towards improved mental health and wellness for yourself and for your workplace teams.

Follow Continuing Education on Twitter and Facebook as we support Bell Let’s Talk Day on Jan. 30. #BellLet’sTalk