As an accredited psychologist it would be an understatement to say that I am passionate about mental health.
Emma Howard
National Mental Health Manager - Clayton Utz
I am an active advocate for supporting mental health in the workplace especially in the areas of personal resilience, supportive leadership and organisational change.
I was recently appointed as a full-time psychologist at a top tier law firm in Australia. This role is the first of its kind at an Australian law firm which suggests mental health is an area of increasing focus in the broader legal industry.
Clayton Utz has made mental health a priority as part of its broader health and wellbeing approach. And my role and appointment is testament to the firm's investment and commitment to improving mental health outcomes.
The role of a mental health manger
My unique role as the National Mental Health Manager has responsibility for providing clinical expertise and direction to the firm in relation to its approach to mental health.
This includes strategic expertise around the development of educational programs, policies and procedures related to mental health and wellbeing.
In this role I am responsible for leading the firm's mental health strategy and approach over the next three to five years, including managing the firm's mental health educational framework as well as the firm's early intervention agenda. Key aspects of my role include:
identifying and developing strategies that reflect credible practices that treat and manage mental illness
supporting the firm's proactive Recover at Work intervention framework and managing Return to Work and Psychological Rehabilitation for Partners and Employees with a mental health concern.
Additionally I design and implement training to Partners and employees on mental health and resilience, building on the knowledge, skills and confidence of our 200+ mental health advocates. These are voluntary mental health advocates who have received training and accreditation in their roles as Mental Health First Aid Officers and Mental Health Champions.
Mental health and the legal industry
The pressure of complex and often demanding work is well known in corporate Australia including the legal sector and broader professional services industry.
We understand the reality of what this means for our people and are actively involved in creating ways to promote positive mental health.
Unfortunately poor mental health doesn’t discriminate against sector, age or a gender and is a broader issue facing corporate Australia.
As a practising psychologist with experience across a range of professional service sectors including media, retail, construction, finance and law, it's important to understand why the prevalence of mental health remains high.
To uncover this, we need to take a closer look at the contributing factors including environmental influences, beyond simply billable hours, as well as the common attributes we typically see of lawyers in the profession.
Importantly improving awareness and education among law firms (and broader corporate Australia) will continue to be key. We need to recognise the types of mental illnesses we commonly see in the workplace and know how to recognise the early warning signs in ourselves and colleagues. This will to help improve mental health literacy in the industry.
Building positive mental health
As mentioned a significant component of my role is the development and implementation of a new mental health strategy. How did we do this? In order to rethink the firm's mental health journey, we had to reflect on where the firm's mental health strategy has come from, where we are today and identify where we want to be in the next three to five years.
The initial mental health strategy focused on three key pillars on promoting protective factors and wellbeing, managing mental ill-health and reducing work related risk factors.
And so far the outcomes across the firm have been encouraging.
To date the firm has seen heartening results which includes increased uptake in employee assistance program (EAP) usage and developed skills of our workforce in mental health awareness and psychological first aid. We have also seen an 80% reduction in insurance premiums and a 72% reduction of claim costs.
These results are promising as well as significant given that one person with depression in the workplace has an expected annual cost of around $10,000 (Lawyers' Weekly).
The firm's renewed mental health strategy will remain dynamic as it continues to promote positive mental wellbeing. This is supported by guiding principles and pillars that will drive early prevention, intervention and recovery all by focusing on the individual (person centred approach).
Building confidence, capability and accountability at all leadership levels across the organisation is key.
By encouraging open conversations with our clients about the importance we place on mental health is an essential part of driving greater mental health literacy.
Recognising that our people's mental health needs evolve over the course of their career lifecycle while building knowledge, skills and confidence at an individual, team and organisational level is another crucial element.
Additionally reducing work-related risk factors and increasing protective factors (for example absence management; fatigue management notifications, access to flexible work practices and safe work design) help to create a proactive and safe workplace for all people.
We want to build and nurture a workplace where our people are equipped to recognise, reach out and respond to mental health without stigma. This is fundamental to the firm's commitment to supporting its people to maintain good mental health.
Above and beyond, as a practicing psychologist operating within a law firm ecosystem, I want to encourage everyone at Clayton Utz to feel comfortable in speaking openly about mental health and mental health conditions without fear of stigma and prejudice.
In doing so, not only are we increasing our understanding of mental health and mental health conditions, we are also creating a culture of authenticity and inclusivity at the firm.
Outlook for mental health
Overall the legal profession is showing signs of improvement in encouraging people to be more open in having conversations about mental health in the workplace.
However, it remains important to keep mental health front of mind, every day as part of the firm's overall purpose.
Clayton Utz is a firm that is known for its friendly, supportive and down-to-earth culture and it is my vision as a practicing psychologist to continue to build on this culture within my team, with People & Development and senior leadership. Applying principles that contribute to the flourishing or optimal functioning of employees and teams is central to our new mental health strategy.
In psychological treatment, psychologist's often say with respect to behavioural change (habit formation) and the adoption of wellbeing techniques and strategies that going from "knowing" to "doing" will lead to "being", helping you to become a "well-being individual". Similarly, an organisation such as a law firm can also "walk the talk in becoming a well-being organisation" however its mental health strategy needs to be the driver for behavioural change - be robust and underpinned by guiding principles focused a person- centred approach.
Emma Howard is the National Mental Health Manager at Clayton Utz