Quartet Health

May 18

By Ingrid Kessler, Quartet Chief People Strategy Officer and Louie Martinez, Quartet Associate People Operations Director

Imagine for a moment that you are a manager under the best of circumstances — you manage a high performing team in a mission-driven business that is thriving. Goals are always met, praise for your team’s work is abundant, and your team seems engaged and happy based on the smiles and high-fives all around you each day. Now take the same high performing team and add a less ideal set of circumstances — an economic downturn, unprecedented personal demands, and tremendous uncertainty. To add even more complexity, you are now managing this team remotely. In the best of times, it is important for managers to look for signs of burnout in their team — fatigue, irritability, illness, and more. In harder times, it is critical.

What is burnout?

Burnout often occurs when an individual’s desire to succeed overrides their personal well-being. Work and life become imbalanced and in many cases, personal sacrifices from health to relationships are made. High performing team members often put the weight of the team, the company, and even your success as a manager on their own shoulders. In some situations, this comes from immense external pressure from a board, company leadership team, manager or peers. In other situations, high performing team members put this pressure on themselves. It is harder to recognize pressure building from within a strong employee, especially when there is a large disconnect with a company that promotes and truly values wellness and work-life balance.

Pressure can come from a company’s culture, from a manager, or from within

From a company’s culture

High performing team members want to please everyone, and shudder at the idea of saying no, asking for an extension, or seeming unable to handle anything and everything asked of them at all times. When this pressure comes from the company, it is your role as a manager to serve as a shield. Practice saying no on behalf of your team. If you can’t say no, advocate for realistic deadlines, help the team make trade-offs and re-prioritize work to accommodate new requests. Burnout undermines engagement. In times of external pressure on your team, be a sounding board for support, share the burden, and model balanced behavior. Even if you are operating within a broader company culture that puts work first at all costs, you can create a microculture on your own team that empowers people to put their health and wellness first, provides a safe place to make mistakes, and maintains a realistic view of workloads. By recognizing the impact each individual makes instead of rewarding heroics at all costs, you can protect your team and allow them to thrive.

From a manager

In a balanced environment, where vacation is encouraged, parenthood and relationships outside of work are celebrated, sick days are unlimited, and mental health is prioritized, burnout still occurs. In these cases, you may inadvertently be creating unnecessary pressure as a manager despite the company not requiring it, or your employees may be putting extraordinary demands on themselves. If you send emails at all hours, reward team members working through illness, ask your team to turnaround work between 5 pm and 9 am, or expect perfection at all times, you may be contributing to an environment that causes burnout. Be mindful of your own tendencies and go out of your way to ask your team for feedback or to flag for you when you are requiring more from them than they can manage.

From within

Internal pressure that employees place on themselves can be hard to identify early, and requires regular 1:1 check-ins to look for warning signs. Internal pressure often comes from an innate sense of responsibility, drive and determination. Success can provide momentum and encourage more effort for more success. Pressure can also come from a fear of failure or a constant striving for perfection. While it is hard to ask high performing employees to do less, take a break, or pull back, it is important to do so to protect them from burnout and care for their health and wellness. Without burnout, high performing employees can innovate, grow and contribute meaningfully for years to come. Employees who recognize your ability to protect them from burnout are likely to feel grateful and loyal to you as a manager.

Additional considerations exist with distributed teams

When employees are in a different physical location from their manager, they may feel compelled to work harder to prove they are productive. In some cases, remote employees are made to feel they must be even more productive when working from home in order to continue this privilege. In other cases, remote employees put this pressure on themselves to make up for the lack of face-time and transparency that comes from sitting next to colleagues (especially those new to being remote).

Circumstances surrounding COVID-19 increased the likelihood of burnout on your team

Employees are currently unable to take restful vacations on distant beaches or visit family and friends who bring them respite and joy. Even though employees would benefit from taking a break and staying local, they are hesitant to take any time off at all when so many jobs are on the line and unemployment is so high. Employees who are self-isolating alone and working from their homes lack boundaries that normally exist between work and personal time because every activity is now occurring at the same kitchen table. Further still, employees who are feeling anxious, are throwing themselves into work at all hours of the day as a distraction from the events going on in the world around them.

Recognizing burnout

In this time of remote work and distributed teams, warning signs of burnout may be less obvious. Individual check-ins are one way to get a better understanding of how people are doing when you can’t see them.

Before an employee reaches the point of burnout, look for these warning signs:

Never saying no to a new task or assignment

Sending emails or text messages at all hours

Personal life absent or put on hold

Sleeplessness

Stops exercising

Unclear how to prioritize; easily overwhelmed

Unable to move forward, feeling stuck or experiencing writer’s block

Unable to navigate past complexity

As an employee experiences more pervasive or severe burnout, more signs appear:

Lack of flexibility

Low tolerance for ambiguity

Comments regarding being burnt out made in passing, or said with sarcasm (these “jokes” should be taken seriously)

Irritability, frustration, snapping, or being short with colleagues

Personal hygiene neglected

Sudden or drastic drop in performance; decreased productivity or quality of work

Sick days on Mondays or getting sick more frequently than usual

Seeming disengaged

Responding to burnout

The best response you can have when your team is burnt out is to encourage time off. Encouraging employees to take time off, and drawing attention to the benefit of time away, can raise awareness and provide the permission your employees are waiting for. Taking time off is necessary, even if that means staying home and catching up on hobbies. Talking about it openly in meetings, or modeling the behavior yourself by taking time away, also reduced stigma.

Sometimes people can’t predict when they will need to use mental health days. Allow people to take time off for mental health the same as you would for physical health. If someone came down with a stomach flu or migraine midday, you may tell them to take the afternoon off. If someone reaches a point of true burnout and cannot be productive for the rest of the day, they may need that same consideration.

Other ways to help employees who are burning out include helping your team prioritize what’s important and say no or “not now” to tasks that can wait and to help your team protect their private time and maintain balance. Proactively tell employees when a project can wait until Monday or that you don’t expect an email response until the next workday if you happen to think of and send a question after work hours.

If you believe an employee is in need of additional support, beyond what you feel you can provide, remind them of mental health resources provided by your company. Resources through a company typically ensure complete anonymity and privacy but people still worry about using them. Show your support and reassure them that resources are provided to be used.

Caring for yourself

In addition to caring for your team, you need to also care for yourself. Take the learnings from here to look inward as well. Being a manager during this time is no easy feat. Managers should be mindful of the early signs of burnout for themselves and make sure they take the time they need to decompress. If you don’t recharge, you are likely to become depleted with nothing left to give to your team. Protecting yourself helps you protect your team and your company.

May 20, 2020

Preexisting mental health challenges have been exacerbated by the impact of the COVID-19 crisis. Based on analysis by McKinsey, COVID-19 could result in a potential 50 percent increase in the prevalence of behavioral health conditions. A new survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation reported that 45 percent of Americans felt that the COVID-19 crisis is harming their mental health; while 19 percent felt that it is having a “major impact.” In a recent poll from the Pew Research Center, 73 percent of Americans reported feeling anxious at least a few days per week since the onset of the pandemic. Between mid-February and mid-March 2020, prescriptions for antianxiety medications increased 34 percent. During the week of March 15, when stay-at-home orders became pervasive, 78 percent of all antidepressant, antianxiety, and anti-insomnia prescriptions filled were new (versus refills).

Read More

OVER THE NEXT THREE MONTHS, NEARLY A MILLION BABIES WILL BE BORN IN THE UNITED STATES. RELIABLE INFORMATION FOR THEM WILL REMAIN SCARCE AS INUNDATED PRENATAL PROVIDERS WORKING IN HEALTHCARE FACILITIES WITH LIMITED PROTECTIVE GEAR ARE OVERBURDENED AND STRUGGLING TO RESPOND TO PATIENTS' MOST BASIC QUERIES.

The good news is that a Los Angeles-based, woman-owned social enterprise – BabyLiveAdvice – is providing accurate, reliable and helpful live support and information to its anxious members as they are going through life's happiest event in fear of the unknown. The company connects expectant and new mothers with a nurse/provider, to answer questions and provide education, including lactation support and online breastfeeding classes.

"Now more than ever we need to support breastfeeding considering it is one of the few reliable preventative health behaviors in this circumstance," says Genevieve Colvin, IBCLC, who is lead lactation consultant and a board member of BabyLiveAdvice.

BabyLiveAdvice partners with healthcare providers and health systems to support coordinated, comprehensive prenatal and postpartum care anywhere, by filling the educational gap for expectant mothers and parents. The end result is reduced complications and better outcomes for mothers and their babies. The company uses a HIPAA-Secure Telehealth platform, offered online through chats, calls or video face-to-face engagements between the mother/parent and a nurse/provider. Complete virtual support is offered from preconception to early childhood.

In addition to one-on-one consultations, BabyLiveAdvice offers peer and professionally led support groups and classes via the web. Programs are designed to bring people together, recognizing the shared emotional experience of pregnancy, motherhood and parenthood.

Most recently, BabyLiveAdvice partnered with three new groups:

GravidaMom – https://www.gravidamom.com/ – a world-class video course company that also provides information guides

Peer Support Solutions – https://www.peersupportsolutions.com/

Postpartum Support International – https://www.postpartum.net/.

"We want to provide members with a variety of options for peer support and online education," Sigi Marmorstein, founder and CEO, BabyLiveAdvice, says. "Our goal is to decrease isolation and improve the knowledge, health and wellbeing of our members, not just during this global health crisis, but far into the future."

PHOTO CAPTION: Sigi Marmorstein, founder and CEO, BabyLiveAdvice

BabyLiveAdvice's program has been piloted extensively, and to date helped thousands of parents to get one-on-one support in their language by a caring provider rather than through pamphlets, blogs, Google searches or articles.

Its mission to help parents and improve the statistics surrounding pregnancy, births and child rearing is working.

Learn more at: https://babyliveadvice.com/

Pain.

When you read the word pain, did a painful experience come to mind? Did a chronic condition stand out to you? Did you start to feel some fatigue after? Chronic pain is tiring and 1 in 5 adults in the US live with chronic pain.*

Pain is one of those tricky and frustrating conditions since in many ways it is invisible. Only the person experiencing the pain can truly understand the severity of their pain. Part of one’s journey with chronic pain is learning how best to communicate it as you advocate for yourself within the medical system.

Pain is common but it’s often done in silence. Peer Support is a helpful supplemental service that offers pain sufferers the opportunity to be heard and understood. It gives them the space to learn how to communicate their pain, name their symptoms, and share how it affects their daily vitality.

As the holiday season is starting, Peer Support Solutions encourages all chronic pain sufferers to seek out peer support. There are support group meetings, chatrooms, and 1:1 coaching sessions on HeyPeers that offer chronic pain support.

In these spaces, all pain is welcomed. Attendees can choose to share their experiences or listen. In every instance, they will be offered mutual support from others.

Log into HeyPeers.com to find support today!

* Prevalence of Chronic Pain and High-Impact Chronic Pain Among Adults — United States, 2016

Tomorrow, September 23, 2020, join Vincent Caimano, our Co-founder and CEO, and Rosemary Weaver, a peer facilitator, present at N.A.P.S. The Future of Peer Support is Here Webinar. Learn more about how peer support is offered is changing for the better with technology!

Below is a blurb about the webinar:

As with previous pandemics, COVID-19 has fundamentally changed the way that people act, think and feel. It is no different with peer support. The way that peer support is provided will be changed forever – in many ways for the better. This workshop will discuss how the 2020 pandemic has begun to alter the role and practice of peer supporters. The presenters will discuss the pandemic-driven acceleration in the adoption of new tools, technology and programs. A survey will be presented about peer supporter readiness for change and the implications for the practice of their work going forward. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated and increased the number of opportunities that Peer Supporters have. This workshop will help the Peer Support workforce to be more aware of those options and be prepared to capitalize on them.

Register for the webinar here.

The Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act (S 785) has been passed in the House and Senate. This bill will allow the Department of Veteran Affairs to expand their mental health services through telehealth. It will specifically work with veterans who are in the midst of a mental health crisis. This important service hopes to continue to support veterans and prevent suicide which claims the lives of 20 veterans a day.

Read more about the bill and upcoming telehealth services for veterans here.

On October 15, 2020, Peer Support Solutions will be joining in on the recognition of the Global Peer Support Celebration Day led by the National Association of Peer Supporters (N.A.P.S.). Global Peer Support Celebration Day is an annual celebration of peer supporters, peer support, and recognizing their work in helping their peers with mental health, addictions, and or trauma-related challenges move along the continuum of recovery and inclusion into communities of his/her/their choosing.

Our Co-Founder and CEO, Vince Caimano, will be participating in a panel discussion with other peer support leaders and allies across the globe to celebrate the work of peer support specialists. Vince will be addressing the topic of Peer Supporter Career Development.

We welcome you to attend this amazing panel discussion on October 15, 2020, at 2 pm ET.

Register Here>>

It all begins with an idea.

How To Start A Conversation About Mental Health

Whether you're a concerned friend or worried for your own health, here are ways to kickstart that conversation – by people who've been there.

By Natasha Hinde

06/02/2020 202

We’re constantly told we should be talking more about our mental health. But when it comes to doing it – actually speaking to someone you’re worried about or opening up yourself – it can be terrifying. What if someone is offended by what you say? What if it ruins your friendship or relationship? What if it all comes out wrong?

There are so many ‘what ifs’, but perhaps the big one we should be asking ourselves is: what if not talking about it means things get even harder?

A survey of more than 4,000 adults in the UK by mental health anti-stigma campaign, Time to Change, found one in three of us would avoid speaking to a friend who is struggling with their mental health to avoid an awkward conversation. Asked why, people’s top concerns were saying the wrong thing (39%), feeling uncomfortable (28%), or being rude (23%).

The survey also revealed that over half of respondents (51%) would prefer not to tell anyone if they were struggling with their own mental health – even if it might help. Talking can save lives, though – so, collectively, we need to be brave.

Starting the conversation about someone else’s mental health...‘I told him during the week that I wanted to have a life chat’

Henry, who preferred not to share his surname, noticed a friend of his was indulging in unhealthy vices more and more, and enjoying them far less. He’d also become more reclusive and seemed to have something on his mind.

Mid-week, Henry, who is 29 and from Bristol, told his mate that he wanted to have a ‘life chat’ with him at the weekend. He didn’t specify whether the chat was about him or his mate.

On a Saturday, the pair met at a local coffee shop which they’d been to before. “There weren’t many people in the spacious café, so we had a comfortable corner to ourselves with big armchairs and no one really within ear shot. It was a warm, familiar setting with a comforting background din,” says Henry.“

I told him I knew things weren’t great and I wanted him to tell me about it. I wanted him to open up so that I could be sure he wasn’t dealing with things alone. We knew each other well and he knew I’d dealt with a fair amount of my own issues, as I’m quite open about them.”

His friend tensed up at first, but when Henry told him that lots of their mutual friends suffered the same, similar or more severe mental health issues, he seemed to relax. “We didn’t speak for as long as I would have liked, as I could tell he was getting more and more uncomfortable and agitated. I didn’t want to push too far and my intention was only to get the ball rolling,” says Henry.

The initial chat had a positive effect though. Since then, he’s been able to return to the conversation with his friend, who has since been more open with his friends and family, and is even considering medication and therapy, too.

I came home from work and asked if she wanted to talk.’

Paul Bickerdike from Wakefield, noticed his daughter Celine hadn’t been her usual chatty and cheerful self for a while. “One day I came home from work and noticed that she was displaying signs of anxiety,” he says. “I asked if she would like to talk about it.” And she did.

Paul and his wife are foster carers, meaning their house is a busy environment where deep and meaningful conversations aren’t easily had. When he had a snatched moment alone with Celine, he told her both he and her mum had noticed she seemed to be unhappy and asked if she would like to talk.“Celine responded positively, so I asked if she would like to go out together to Nando’s,” Paul recalls. “I knew this was a place she liked and wasn’t too crowded.”

Having broached the topic at home, it was easier to jump into a more in-depth discussion when they went out to get a bite to eat, says Paul – but they didn’t speak about mental health until the food had arrived, which helped Celine relax and both of them to be honest “that things were not as we would want”.

“As a parent it was hard for me to come to terms with the fact that my child was not living the happy and fulfilling life I had envisioned for her since the day she was born,” he admits. “I needed to put my own feelings aside and to put her need first.”Celine, now 22, says the chat was helpful because her dad showed compassion rather than judgement. “Young people want their parents’ advice, they just don’t want the extra baggage of judgment or forcefulness that can so often come with it,” she says.

Starting the conversation about your own mental health...‘I asked if he would be comfortable if we arranged a time to sit down and talk about our feelings.’

Zoe Hazel, 29 and from Kent, has borderline personality disorder (BPD) and experiences of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). She and her dad had never spoken about her mental health and Zoe felt like it affected their relationship. It was the elephant in the room, so they agreed to chat about it.“We’d discussed having the conversation after we’d been out for my birthday in November,” says Zoe. “I asked if he would be comfortable if we arranged a time to sit down and talk about our feelings.”On the day they sat down with a cup of tea while her mum was out, and Zoe started by explaining what she was experiencing. “I asked if he had any questions. It was shaky to start, but then the conversation started to feel more natural,” she says. “Since then I can tell him when I’m having a bad day. I don’t feel like I need to keep it to myself anymore.”Her advice to others is to try to keep it casual and informal, just two loved ones having a chat. “And most importantly, if the person isn’t willing to listen, walk away. You do not have to prove yourself to anyone.”‘

We went for a beer and started talking as usual. It didn’t start out about mental health, but then he asked me how I was.’

Ryan Francis, who is 46 and from Bristol, has general anxiety disorder, depression and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). After the birth of his daughter, he started feeling suicidal – it was during this time that he turned to a friend for help.“We went for a beer and started talking as usual,” Ryan recalls. “It didn’t start out about mental health, but then he asked me, ‘How are you doing?’”Normally, Ryan would’ve said he was fine but on this occasion he told his friend he was struggling. “He asked, ‘In what way?’ and we went from there,” says Ryan. “I opened up and then he told me about his own experiences, which helped me feel less alone. He talked through my problems with me and helped me to rationalise some of the things I was saying.”It was a relief for Ryan to get it all out. Now, if either he or his friend feel that way, they meet up for a beer and a chat. “Speaking wasn’t a magic pill, but it helped me,” he says. “A lot of the time it’s not about saying anything in particular – it’s just about listening.”

Tips for talking from Jo Loughran at Time To Change:1. Ask twice.

Research shows that ‘How are you?’ can often prompt no more than a meaningless exchange. The simple act of asking again, with interest, shows a genuine willingness to talk and listen. If you’re worried about someone, the next time they say they’re fine, try asking ‘How are you really?’ or ‘Are you sure you’re ok?’2.

Ask open questions. We can worry about prying when it comes to mental health, but it’s better to ask questions. It might help someone to get things off their chest, and it shows that you care. Some questions you can ask are: ‘What does it feel like?’, ‘What kind of thoughts are you having?’ and ‘How can I help?’3.

Think about the time and place. Sometimes it’s easier to talk side-by-side. Try chatting while doing something else, like walking. Some people might prefer to talk somewhere with background noise, others may rather have a quiet conversation at home. Everyone is different, so think about which environment you are likely to both feel most comfortable in.4.

Keep conversations small and informal. You don’t have to set aside hours to chat. Talking when shopping, cooking or driving can take the pressure off – it doesn’t need to be a formal sit-down conversation.5.

Depersonalise the situation. It might easier to talk about a hypothetical event rather than asking direct questions about feelings or speaking about your own. For example: ‘work can be really stressful, can’t it?’6.

Help them see they’re not alone. If you know someone else who has struggled with their mental health, talking anonymously about their experiences might be a good way of starting a dialogue, or you could discuss celebrities who are talking about their mental health in the media.7.

Talk about your own feelings. Being open about your own emotions shows it’s ok to be open too.8.

Don’t try and fix it. Resist the urge to offer quick fixes. Often listening is enough.9.

Look after yourself, too. Choosing to talk can make a real difference to someone’s life but it can also bring up difficult things that people may not have spoken about before. If you or someone you know might need support, organisations like Mind (mind.org.uk), Rethink Mental illness (rethink.org) and Samaritans (samaritans.org) provide guidance and advice.

MARI HALL mhall@billingsgazette.com Apr 6, 2020

Terry Ball first started attending mental health support groups at NAMI to cope with his bipolar disorder. Now he is a group facilitator helping others who struggle with mental illness.

In person meetings at NAMI have been canceled due to the coronavirus but Ball is working to continue the meetings online. Terry Ball facilitates a support group and understands from experience how necessary they are.

The novel coronavirus has prompted public health officials to mandate Yellowstone County residents to stay home, followed with Gov. Steve Bullock issuing a shelter-in-place order for all Montana residents that started March 28 in an effort to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. This order to stay home and limit physical contact with others has forced many groups and organizations to cancel their support group sessions. Many people rely on them, including Ball, who facilitates the NAMI Connection support group within NAMI Billings, or the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

The group is used to making connections among those who live with a mental illness. Ball has bipolar disorder and can relate to others within the support group.“I do find that I miss it,” Ball said. “If I miss two (meetings) in a row, I’m really wanting to go to that third one. I’ve missed four now, and I’m definitely feeling it.”The group of about 10 people met twice a week in person before the restrictions were put into place.

Ball said that NAMI Billings will be using a video platform called Hey Peers starting in April. The hope is to have the video platform set up for the nonprofit’s educational classes and the NAMI Family to Family support group too, created for those who have a loved one living with a mental illness. All classes and support groups are free, Ball said.“The biggest thing about it is it’s a safe place for people because everybody in the room has been there and we all understand that,” Ball said. “ ... It’s changed my life for the positive.”

The Billings-based South Central Montana Regional Mental Health Center doesn’t have support groups, but provides other in-person service groups like Journey Recovery, a 10- to 12-week program that treats and diagnoses addiction disorders. The center is looking into forming an online format for the group, and others, according to executive director Barbara Mettler. During times like these, layoffs, financial insecurity and prolonged isolation can make things hard for certain individuals.Mettler said that since the building is closed, the center’s therapists bill for therapy sessions over the phone, now that Montana’s government waived certain restrictions within Medicaid. “They’re worried about their rent. They have children — how do they pay for day care? All of those things,” Mettler said. “After a while it starts feeling hopeless, and when someone loses their hope, it puts them at high risk.”

All visitation has been suspended at the Rimrock Foundation in Billings, the largest behavioral health center in Montana. The center has mental health and substance abuse treatment departments and provides inpatient and outpatient treatment.In addition to their care, inpatients also attend support groups outside the center. Now, the center’s had to make some changes, according to Lenette Kosovich, CEO of the Rimrock Foundation.The groups now hold various meetings internally, including Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous meetings, and adhere to social distancing guidelines.“We have several staff members that are in recovery that know how to hold those meetings,” Kosovich said. “We don’t ask anyone to come in and do them during this time.” For those not receiving services from the Rimrock Foundation, AA meetings have also continued in Billings, according to two members of the AA fellowship in Montana.The Gazette will not report the identities of the members and facilitators in recovery and counseling with AA, due to the anonymous nature of the organization. Their identities have been verified and are known to the Gazette.There are more than 21 AA groups in Billings alone, and most have moved to a conference call or video call format. Members of each group facilitate the meetings differently and choose when and how often they’ll meet.However, a few groups are still in the planning stages of getting online, according to one AA member. Through the fellowship’s more than 80-year history, it’s been tradition to keep all members anonymous, but connecting over the internet can make that difficult.Not keeping a record of members’ contact information also creates obstacles for those trying to reach out.However, members and those seeking an AA meeting can call the AA hotline at 833-800-8553, or visit aa-montana.org to get connected to resources or get help.“Trying to get some of these groups together on a Zoom platform, or on Google, or a conference call has been difficult because everybody wants to get input,” one AA member said. “There are a lot of people who are concerned that doing something like that would break a tradition."The 13th Judicial District SOAR Court is also going through a few changes. The SOAR Court, which stands for Seize Opportunity and Recover, aims to help drug users recover and avoid prosecution through early addiction treatment.The program’s nine participants keep in contact with the court’s staff through digital apps and other online formats. Court status hearings with a judge are done online as well, according to program coordinator Shelley Thomson.Treatments and counseling are done over a video format, along with free workout routines by The Phoenix and life coaching by Let’s Strut Your Stuff.Drug testing is another way to help participants stay in recovery, Thomson said. A testing agency goes to a participant’s home and places a test kit for a urine sample at the front door. The participant places the test outside the door after providing a sample and is collected and processed according to protocol.Program coordinators have had to think outside the box to connect participants to resources, and they plan to continue using some online access if participants don’t have a car. Thomson hopes to increase the number of participants over the year, depending on how things progress.But lacking the in-person social interaction with groups, counselors and other supporters can make sobriety difficult, Thomson said.“They’ve got no in-person experiences,” Thomson said. “Those are the ones that I really worry about, and that’s why the shelter-in-place (order), while I think it’s a good idea to combat this virus, I think that it can be a very scary piece for vulnerable populations.” Above all, mental health providers and support group facilitators agreed: staying connected is vital, especially during a quarantine and social distancing. To offer another way to connect, RiverStone Health also shared a list of free virtual meetings on its Facebook page."There are people there who share what they're going through," Mettler said. "It's coming together and knowing there are other people out there who care." This article originally ran on billingsgazette.com.

BLOOMBERG

APR 3, 2020

During the coronavirus pandemic, it seems as if everyone is connecting with Zoom’s videoconferencing app — including, on occasion, unwanted visitors.

Online trolls have been sneaking into web meetings and disrupting them with profanities and pornography for at least the better part of the last month. Cybersecurity researchers fear these disruptions could be a precursor to more harmful attacks allowing hackers to commandeer connected machines to access secure files or other corporate software.

“Much of our current reality is unchartered territory, and this growing dependence on Zoom at home is just another one,” said Mark Ostrowski, regional head of engineering for Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. “As soon as a platform’s attack surface gets big enough, you can only expect that they’ll become more interesting to attackers. That’s what’s happened to Zoom.”

In a Wednesday blog post, Zoom said that it takes security concerns “extremely seriously” and is working to address them. In addition, a Zoom representative said in an email that the company is upset about reports of harassment on Zoom and has sought to educate users about protecting meetings.

But there’s good news. Users don’t have to follow Elon Musk, whose SpaceX has banned the use of Zoom Video Communications Inc. amid privacy concerns.

There are a few simple steps to host secure video meetings, according to security experts. For instance, ensure your meeting is password protected, and don’t share meeting IDs and passwords on social media, where criminal hackers may grab the credentials.

Experts also recommend that meeting or classroom organizers take attendance and kick out unwanted visitors.

Zoom’s shares have more than doubled this year as investors bet that the teleconferencing company would be one of the rare winners from the coronavirus pandemic. The company has become wildly popular, reaching more than 200 million daily meeting participants in March, according to its blog. But it has also drawn increased scrutiny from cybersecurity and privacy experts.

The most recent incident came on Monday when Patrick Wardle, principal security researcher at Jamf, published a blog about two new flaws in Zoom. If already infected with malware, the Mac OS desktop version could enable attackers to gain high-level privileges and hijack the webcam and microphone, he said. Zoom said it subsequently released fixes for the issues.

Zoom appears to have been designed with security as an “afterthought,” Wardle said, adding that it was a common phenomenon among startups primarily focused on users and funding.

But Zoom’s meteoric popularity has drawn additional scrutiny.

“We did not design the product with the foresight that, in a matter of weeks, every person in the world would suddenly be working, studying, and socializing from home,” Zoom said in the blog post. The influx of new users has presented the company with “challenges we did not anticipate when the platform was conceived” and that company “committed to learning from them and doing better in the future.”

On March 30, the FBI issued a warning about so-called “zoom-bombing,” urging users not to make classes or meetings public or share links to teleconferences on social media.

That same day, a Zoom user sued the company claiming its services were illegally disclosing personal information.

The company collects information when users install or open the Zoom application and shares it, without proper notice, to third parties including Facebook Inc., according to the federal lawsuit. Yet Zoom’s privacy policy doesn’t explain to users that its app contains code that discloses information to others, according to the complaint.

Zoom acknowledged that it shares data with Facebook in a blog post on March 27.

In addition, New York State Attorney General Letitia James wrote a recent letter to Zoom that included “a number of questions to ensure the company will take appropriate steps to ensure users’ privacy and security is protected,” according to a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office, who declined to share a copy of the letter.

Concerns over Zoom’s security practices aren’t new. Last year, a researcher named Jonathan Leitschuh discovered that the desktop version of Zoom for Macs quietly installed a web server — one that remained on systems even if the app was removed — that presented a new way for hackers to access webcams, he said. Apple Inc. released an update in July that plugged the security hole.

Holding Zoom’s “feet to the fire” around security and privacy amid the app’s new popularity will create incentives for the company to adapt, Leitschuh said in an interview.

April 3, 2020

How employers can support employees with depression

By Kathy Gurchiek

November 7, 2019, SHRM

Sadness, difficulty concentrating and making decisions, slowed thoughts. Depression can feel suffocating and never-ending to individuals who have it, and at work it can manifest in missed deadlines, tardiness and poor work quality.

Depression is estimated to cause 200 million lost workdays each year at a cost of $17 billion to $44 billion to employers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Depression is a major cause of disability, absenteeism, presenteeism and productivity loss among working-age adults.

While the cause of depression is not well-understood, work and nonwork factors play a role, the CDC noted. A number of studies, including one in the October 2018 issue of International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, identified several job stressors that can contribute to depression: challenging job demands, low control over one's job, long hours and a lack of friends at work.

More people are talking about mental health in the workplace. On Oct. 23, "CBS This Morning" dedicated an hour of its news broadcast to a live-audience special, "#StoptheStigma," about mental health issues. People shared their stories on Twitter using the same hashtag.

The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) addressed mental health at its SHRM Inclusion 2019 event in New Orleans at the end of October, and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) hosted a conversation about mental health in the workplace Oct. 30 in Washington, D.C.

"We all know someone who has struggled with a mental health condition," said Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia at the DOL panel discussion, SHRM Online reported.

The Employer's Role

"[Depression] can be paralyzing … and is completely all-consuming," said Kristin Tugman, vice president of health and productivity analysis and consulting at Prudential Financial. She spoke recently in a webinar on understanding suicide's impact in the workplace. A 2018 study found that work stress, such as long hours and job strain, is a leading cause of suicide among U.S. workers.

[SHRM members-only toolkit: Employing People with Mental Health Disabilities]

However, with proper care, Tugman said, 80 percent of people with depression will recover and improve.

Employees want a supportive workplace. An online survey conducted with 1,500 full-time workers found that 86 percent said they think it's important that a company's culture supports mental health. The research was conducted by Harvard Business Review and Mind Share Partners, a nonprofit in San Francisco that offers corporate training and advising around mental health.

Ideally, employers should create an environment where people are educated about recognizing high-risk behavior and provide a secure portal where those observations can be submitted, said Tom Miller. He is chief executive officer at ClearForce, a Vienna, Va.-based technology company that helps organizations with early and ongoing discovery of health risks.

"[If] you have somebody you think is a threat to themselves, and you're making decisions on the fly" about how to handle that, "it's really hard at that point to consider all the factors and consistently make all the [right] decisions."

Establish Psychological Safety

Employers need to create a culture where employees feel safe sharing what they are going through, said Shane Metcalf, co-founder and chief culture officer at San Francisco-based 15Five.

"You don't even have to have an explicit conversation about mental health to begin creating a healthy environment."

Sharing may be as simple as a one-word check-in at the beginning of a meeting: Joe says he is "tired" because he stayed up late watching the World Series. Tanya is "frazzled" because an accident snarled traffic on her drive to the office.

"That establishes psychological safety. Without the cursory level of psychological safety, you can't have the deeper conversations around depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, around trauma-related mental health issues or depression," Metcalf said.

"It's a day-to-day process. So much of this is starting to treat people with kindness. You can hold people accountable and [still] treat people with kindness."

Even changing the language around mental health can make a difference, according to Tugman.

" 'Mental health condition' is less stigmatizing than 'mental illness' or 'mental disorder,' " she said. News accounts of mass shootings, for example, often place the blame on the perpetrator's mental state, "which tends to perpetuate the stigma."

Employee resource groups (ERGs) can help reduce the stigma around depression and other mental health issues and provide support to employees. Johnson & Johnson, for example, launched its ERG program, Mental Health Diplomats, in 2017 for employees with mental illness and those caring for loved ones with mental illness. The ERG offers awareness and training to colleagues to help create a mental health-friendly workplace, and the company's employee assistance program (EAP) includes trained therapists onsite.

The CDC suggests the following strategies for employers to support their employees' mental health:

Train supervisors in depression recognition. "We are starting to see more and more employers asking the question 'What do we do?' One of our first answers is manager sensitivity training," Tugman said. Ernst & Young instituted an interactive program on the signs and symptoms of and interventions and resources for mental illnesses and addiction. It was developed for company leaders, managers and concerned peers to destigmatize mental illness, addiction and other personal struggles the organization's employees may be facing. Only 25 percent of managers have received training on how to refer employees to mental health resources, according to a report from Unum, an employee benefits provider. More than half of those are unsure how they would help a colleague who came to them with a mental health issue. The findings are from a survey of 1,850 U.S. employed adults, 1,500 of whom had a diagnosed mental health issue. The respondents included 268 HR professionals.

Offer depression-recognition screenings. Unum found that 42 percent of the people surveyed said they had gone to work experiencing suicidal feelings. For employees who seek treatment, Tugman suggested that employers have a return-to-work plan, such as establishing realistic job expectations and modifying the job as the individual returns to functional work capacity.

Use EAPs to promote greater awareness of depression and anxiety. Starbucks announced in 2019 it would provide enhanced mental health benefits through its EAP.

The coffee retailer is partnering with Mental Health First Aid, a national program that teaches people the skills they need to respond to the signs of mental illness and substance use, to offer training to Starbucks managers. By January 2020, Starbucks employees in the U.S. and Canada are expected to have access to subscriptions for the meditation app Headspace.

Provide health insurance benefits that give employees access to psychiatric services. U-Haul International is expanding its benefits to include mental and emotional support for its full- and part-time employees and members of their households. This will include counseling sessions and a concierge service that offers child care help and legal and financial direction. This past summer, Ocean Spray began waiving behavioral health co-pays for its approximately 2,000 employees so that more people could get help for mental health concerns, according to Susan French, senior manager of benefits and wellness.

"We spend so much time in the workplace," Tugman said, "and as employers we have a huge opportunity to recognize [the signs of mental health issues] before people start to spiral downward into depression and suicide."

By Rick Nauert PhD

Associate News Editor

Last updated: 8 Aug 2018 ~ 2 MIN READ

A new study finds that getting college students to engage with peer-run organizations that focus on mental health awareness can reduce campus-wide mental health stigma and help people receive necessary mental health services.

The RAND Corporation investigation discovered improving college students’ knowledge about mental health can play an important role in improving the campus climate toward mental health.

The research is the largest longitudinal study examining the impact of a student mental health peer organization on students’ mental health stigma, knowledge and helping behaviors. Investigators followed 1,129 students from 12 California college campuses.

Researchers found that students’ familiarity with Active Minds, one such student mental health peer organization, was linked to a decrease in stigma about mental health issues over time, while involvement with the program was associated with an increase in helping behaviors.

The study appears online in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

“Student-run organizations aimed at teaching peers about mental health issues may be instrumental in shaping a more-supportive climate toward mental health issues on college campuses over the course of a single academic year,” said Dr. Bradley D. Stein, the study’s corresponding author and a senior physician scientist at RAND.

Recent studies estimate that 20 percent to 36 percent of college students cope with some form of serious psychological distress, yet only about a third of these students receive services despite the fact they often have access to on-campus help.

Many student peer organizations on college campuses actively work to educate students about mental health issues and are designed to reduce the stigma often associated with seeking help for emotional or psychological problems. This is important as students with mental health problems are more likely to receive needed services if they feel the climate on their college campus is more positive with respect to mental health.

Active Minds is the oldest national nonprofit organization encouraging students to speak openly about mental health, with more than 400 student-run chapters on college and high school campuses across the United States.

With funding from a special state tax intended to improve mental health services, the California Mental Health Services Authority (CalMHSA) has provided support for Active Minds chapters on college and university campuses across the state.

“College is a challenging time in the lives of the state’s young adults so it’s important to make sure students’ mental health needs are adequately addressed,” said Wayne Clark, executive director of CalMHSA. “We’re pleased that the investment by counties statewide in these peer-run programs are improving students’ views about mental health and their coping skills.”

To assess the impact of the Active Minds programs on the California campuses, RAND researchers surveyed 1,129 students from 12 campuses that have Active Minds chapters. Students surveyed included both those who were involved with Active Minds and those with little or no knowledge of the organization.

Students completed surveys three times over the 2016-17 academic year, and were asked about their familiarity with Active Minds and their knowledge of and attitudes toward a number of mental health issues. More than 60 percent of the students surveyed had little familiarity or involvement with the Active Minds program at the study’s onset.

Researchers found that increased familiarity and involvement with Active Minds was associated with increases in perceived knowledge about mental health and decreases in stigma about mental health over time. These changes were seen even among students with no direct involvement with Active Minds.

Students who became more involved with the organization were more likely over time to provide emotional support to peers and connect someone with mental health struggles to professional help.

Researchers say the findings suggest that student peer organizations that use a combination of individual, small-group and large-scale education programs can meaningfully influence not only students’ perceived knowledge and attitudes, but also their behaviors within a single academic year.

“It appears that involvement in the types of activities conducted by Active Minds may translate into positive changes for many students,” said Lisa Sontag-Padilla, Ph.D., the study’s lead author and a behavioral social scientist at RAND.

“Further research should examine what types of activities trigger the biggest changes, as well as to what extent involvement increases a student’s own mental health and their ability to seek help.”

Source: Rand Corporation/EurekAlert