Canadian HR Reporter

www.hrreporter.com 3 There's also this constant fatigue, where people just can't get motivated to do things like everyday chores, says Ferguson. "You don't want to cook, you're barely eating, you're barely functioning… in the way that you should be normally — that's the time where there really is an issue that you have to look at getting help for." Solutions include virtual care, group discussions Sun Life has always had a strong focus on mental health, says Peterson, which includes free and confidential counselling for employees and their families, along with cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) digitally for employees to learn about because of poor education or language problems or prior mental health issues or almost any kind of diversity issue — these will be individuals that tend to suffer the worse when times get worse." There's even been talk of people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) because of the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. But the definition of trauma is somewhat problematic here, says Dobson. "When you look at it from a formal mental health literature perspective, it usually should be something that's acute, something that's potentially life threatening, something that has a terror quality to it. And I think the pandemic doesn't really have those characteristics." If a person became infected and was close to death, then there could be a trauma-related response to that, he says, and health-care workers on the front lines could also see increased rates of trauma potentially — but for the general public, it's unlikely. Unfortunately, some people will end up self-medicating, which is the worst thing to do because alcohol is a depressant on the central nervous system, says Ferguson. "People will self-medicate with drugs and alcohol at times because… they might be having difficulty sleeping and they think that's a good fix. And it's a temporary one, but it's not helping you in the long term." Others may start to have appetite difficulties or sleep too much, she says. "They call that hypersomnia, so it is a form of a typical depression where they don't want to get out of bed… so that's something to watch for as well." how they think and feel to build mental resiliency. "It is my expectation that people will really turn to that kind of virtual care faster in this environment," she says. "That's absolutely something that we are paying attention to and we're promoting with our employees." Virtual mental health can be very effective in making those important connections, says Ferguson. "I understand it's not in person, but you're still having very effective sessions and you can send materials back and forth through email," she says. "There's a lot of ways that you could do this professionally." But the shift toward telepsychology or distance therapy is a good second best, says Dobson. "It's not the same as providing live services," he says. "People that either don't have access to technological ways of communicating, don't feel comfortable with it or sometimes even try and maybe aren't successful or don't get the response they want, they might just give up." Employers might also want to point employees to self-assessment tools such as that offered by the Mental Health Commission of Canada, says Dobson. "It looks at behavioural well-being, mental well-being, emotional well-being, social well-being and substance use — so different domains of functioning." The pandemic situation is also a good opportunity to relook at employee benefits such as those for mental health. KPMG, for example, provides $2,000 each year and has opened up the definition of who qualifies, says Trottier. "If you go look at your benefits DEPRESSION LEVELS RISE BUT FEWER PEOPLE SEEK HELP "People will self- medicate with drugs and alcohol at times because they might be having difficulty sleeping and they think that's a good fix." Donna Ferguson, CAMH sometimes, unless the person has 12 degrees besides their name, they're not approved. Why? [So], now social workers are covered, psychologists are covered… psychotherapists, I think, some newer counsellors now are covered." Another way to support employees is by offering them a place to come together to discuss their challenges and successes. Sun Life, for example, has set up a group on Workplace for Facebook for employees with young children, says Peterson. "[They] can connect with one another and share strategies and maybe share some pain and get some support around that." KPMG also has created a "home alone" network on Microsoft Teams, says Trottier. "It's really a forum to stay connected, but people are posting uplifting stories and humorous items, social hangout stuff and it's kind of neat having 8,000 employees across the country [who] don't know each other." Leader support important It's also important for employees to be alerted to fundamental resources such as an employee assistance program 16% Number of people reporting high levels of depression — up from seven per cent before the pandemic 42% Number of people accessing mental health supports today — down from 52 per cent before the pandemic. 43% Number of 18- to 34-year-olds with higher anxiety — compared to those 55 and older (27 per cent) Source:Mental Health Research Canada (MHRC)

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