EFDC members Michelle B. Riba, MD, MS, and Sagar V. Parikh, MD, FRCPC, along with their colleagues Preeti N. Malani, MD, MSJ,and  Robert D. Ernst, MD, recently wrote an article for the Psychiatric Times, presenting the top interventions to support faculty and staff mental health in the workplace. 

Read the original article, written by the authors on the Psychiatric Times website, here. 

While the COVID-19 pandemic has had a notable impact on college students’ mental health, recent studies show that similar effects are present in the mental health of faculty and staff, as well. Consequently, the researchers propose that it is critical for colleges and universities as large employers to address workplace mental health, especially during these stressful times. 

The University of Michigan Eisenberg Family Depression Center, its Workplace Mental Health Solutions program, and the university’s student well-being partners have proposed the following interventions in efforts to tackle these mental health issues. 

1. Make Mental Health a Top Priority
2. Convene Key Stakeholders
3. Use Resource Mapping
4. Train Faculty and Staff
5. Develop Peer Support Programs
6. Implement Continued Training
7. Follow a Strategic Framework

The strategies prioritize the use of preventative measures to improve the mental well-being of faculty and staff. 

“For institutions of higher education, the optimal approach to wide-ranging health concerns should invoke a public health lens,” say the authors.