Celebrating Mental Wellness at the workplace

Contributed by the Culture & Collaboration (C&C) staff committee

MOHT commemorated World Mental Health Day with activities that nourished the body, mind and soul.

Mental wellness is so often overlooked in today’s fast-paced society. And it is for this reason that MOHT’s Mental Wellness Day this year was aimed at providing colleagues with a rejuvenating experience focused on self-care and mental wellbeing. Thanks to the thoughtful planning of C&C’s Mental Wellness subcommittee, helmed by Dr Valerie Ng, we enjoyed a yummy DIY lunch, tea blending workshop, and heartfelt conversations where we gained a better understanding of each other’s concerns and challenges and bonded over shared interests and experiences.

Dr Tan Weng Mooi, Head (Integrated Health Promotion) and Director at MOHT, who opened the event, said: “We spend a large proportion of our time at work, so it is important that our home away from home is a place that allows us all to feel safe, valued and heard, so that we can all contribute meaningfully towards our shared aspirations.”

Dr Tan explained further: “Colleagues are a part of our community, and our interactions and relationships with them contribute to our social, mental and emotional wellbeing.”

World Mental Health Day 2024 is premised upon prioritising workplace mental health. This year’s theme highlights various aspects of mental health at work, from workplace conditions and stress management to the importance of social inclusion and empowerment.

Dr Tan Weng Mooi urged colleagues to take care of their mental wellbeing

The muah chee booth set up spontaneously by our colleague Cynthia Ong (second from the right)

Fruity or Floral? With some help from The Tea Crafters, we learnt to concoct our own tea blends

Delving deeper into stress management at the workplace, we took part in Let’s Chat, a dialogue designed by our colleagues that allowed us to share our thoughts, views and feelings candidly on how we cope at work.

Facilitated by our colleagues Caleb Tan and Nurul Afiqah, we discussed how we could better identify and reach out to colleagues under immense stress, and what constituted safe spaces in the office. There was gratitude aplenty as we started sharing experiences in which a colleague had done something nice for us. 😊

Our key takeaway: Don’t shy away from asking someone if they’re okay. Everyone appreciates a friend at work! And of course, gestures of encouragement such as free ice-cream in the pantry will do wonders to lift the mood (*hint hint* bosses)!

Laughter is indeed the best medicine; sharing our stressors and tips for self-care with one another.

Here are some tips for building an organisational culture that supports mental health, adapted from an article by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health:

• Express Gratitude. This can foster high-quality relationships and a more positive and collaborative workplace. The action will not only benefit the recipients, but also those expressing it.

• Practise Email Etiquette. Make sure to include an accurate subject line, a concise summary of your ask, and a clear timeline or deadline in your emails. Feel free to put “no reply necessary” or “not time sensitive” at the top of an email to help recipients prioritise their time. Use “reply all” only when necessary.

• Prioritise No Meeting & Meeting-Less Days. Consider designating two or three no-meeting workdays a month and refrain from scheduling meetings on those days. You can also encourage colleagues to be judicious with scheduling only essential meetings.

• Participate in Mindfulness Activities. Take a few moments throughout the day to pause and focus on the present. Spend a few minutes on deep breathing practices or meditation to clear your mind and boost your mood.

• Practise Job Crafting. Try to alter the type, scope, sequence, and number of tasks that make up your work, connect with people that you never interact with but who can be relevant to your work, or view some of your tasks from a different perspective.

• Be a Source of Social Support. Try to engage in active listening with some colleagues and provide emotional support. If you are a supervisor, proactively build a psychologically safe environment and be a source of social support for your team.

Ultimately, perpetuating mental wellness at the workplace doesn’t stop at a one-day event. It takes continuous effort from everyone to commit to prioritising mental wellness, to ensure that the office isn’t just a place of work but also a reflection of who we are, how we get things done, and most importantly, walking the journey together – mindfully, thoughtfully, caringly.