Managing Psychological Injuries in the Workplace
A workers’ psychological health can be adversely affected by:
- Exposure to a poorly designed or managed work environment
- A traumatic event
- Workplace violence
- Fatigue
- Bullying or harassment
- Excessive work pressures
Any of these factors can result in workers experiencing a prolonged stress response. The physical, mental and emotional reactions which arise when people perceive that their work demands exceed their ability to cope, over time may lead to psychological or physical injury.
Traditionally risk management practices conducted by workplace health and safety professionals do not account for the prevention and management of a workers psychological wellbeing, often exposing a workplace to preventable workers compensation claims and/or the development of significant mental health conditions. This may adversely affect workplace culture, employee wellbeing and prevent healthy workplaces from being established.