Log in or become a subscriber

After setting a goal of having at least one mental health first aid officer on every site, an employer has made mental health conversations a seamless part of its culture, and says this helps to "insulate" employees from their psychologically challenging work.

The vet services industry has workforce suicide rates that are two-to-four-times higher than in the general public, exceeding those seen among workers providing healthcare to humans, Greencross Pet Wellness Company's national L&D manager Michelle Storay says.

In her prior role as a veterinary nurse, Storay experienced the industry's emotional demands and challenges firsthand, and she's also seen her colleagues struggle, so in 2018 she completed training to become a mental health first aid officer (MHFAO), she tells HR Daily.

Not long afterwards, she identified a need for more consistency and structure in Greencross' approach to mental wellbeing, and it formed a partnership with Mental Health First Aid Australia. In 2019, it started rolling out training across the organisation...