Why Increased Investment in Employee Mental Health Is a Priority in the Care Industry

The care industry is crucial in the UK, particularly with an aging population needing greater care than ever before.  

Providing essential services to vulnerable groups, it is one of the largest employment sectors – crucially, it relieves pressure on the NHS by freeing up resources. 

Despite the indispensable role care workers play, they are often not provided with adequate support when it comes to mental wellbeing. 

Amidst current struggles to recruit, high turnover rates, low wages and job dissatisfaction, the sector could benefit from increased investment in mental health support, an area with the potential to have an incredibly positive impact. 

Here, we explore the current challenges and opportunities – and the risks the industry faces. 

The mental wellbeing challenges in the care sector  

There is no doubt that care workers face challenges that are unique in the industry. 

Difficult working conditions, severe time pressures – particularly when it comes to at home care – and the emotional impact of the job itself all add up to take their toll on carers’ mental health.  

During Covid, the care sector was particularly hard hit, with elderly residents dying from the virus at an increased rate compared to other demographics in society. What wasn’t reported on was the impact this had on the carers looking after them, who formed relationships and went through a grieving process with every loss. The care sector has not had chance to recover from this, with the cost-of-living crisis adding even more stress to a sector that has among the lowest earners. 

A historical lack of investment 

Support for the care sector has been severely limited from the Government. The system has not been given the same levels of authority and public funding as the NHS, creating a divide between health and social care. This kind of systemic neglect has laid the foundation for a continued lack of investment. 

This means that support often falls to charities like Cornwall Partners In Care (CPIC) and Care Workers’ Charity (CWC), which are doing incredible work to help out. 

It’s hard to say exactly what has caused this chronic underfunding in mental health support. It is most likely a combination of low profit margins and high staff turnover causing companies to be less willing to invest in someone who may not be around long. 

There’s also the fact that care is such a specialist sector that standard mental health training isn’t always effective. Many employers put standard EAPs in place, achieving very little. 

This is because support in this sector should be personalised to the needs of employees, who naturally face different challenges to office or factory workers, for instance. 

Weighing up the risks 

Without sufficient mental health support, staff turnover continues to be high. In companies where we see a significant commitment to good mental health support, we see high levels of staff retention and wellbeing.  

But if a carer is unsupported and their mental health struggles as a result, the risk is not that they leave, but that they stay. This can lead to lower levels of care being provided, and decreased wellbeing for care home residents and recipients of care.  

We need to be aware that burnout and compassion fatigue are incredibly high in the care sector. Many stories are often reported about carers offering unethical levels of care to vulnerable people, but it’s often missed in the reporting that the reason for this isn’t bad people, but poor levels of support for people doing a challenging job. 

What can employers do to address these issues? 

Putting a strong mental health support system in place, even if it’s through a charity scheme like CPIC or CWC, is a good start.  

Speaking to employees about the wellbeing challenges they face, and then looking to address that with bespoke training and support can help target areas where staff are vulnerable. 

Having employees trained in Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) can be particularly powerful. This vital tool means organisations benefit from having someone in the team they can go to with mental health struggles or concerns – someone who’s qualified to point people in the right direction. 

Additional training can also be beneficial, such as training around bereavement for staff working in care homes where death is a more common occurrence than in other industries, or self-care training for employees working with dementia patients.  

Ultimately, investment in people leads to greater returns, for the business, the staff and the residents under their care. 

For more information about how our team of experts can help employers in the care industry with tailored mental health training solutions, please contact us today.