Enhancing mental health care will benefit Canadian economy: report

Improving mental health treatment could boost the Canadian economy by billions of dollars, according to a new report from The Conference Board of Canada’s Canadian Alliance for Sustainable Health Care.

According to the report, Healthy Brains at Work: Estimating the Impact of Workplace Mental Health Benefits and Programs,Canada’s economy could gain between 228,000 and 352,000 jobs per year until 2035 if all employees living with depression and/or anxiety had access to treatments allowing them to be fully functional at work.

Improved treatment of depression among employed Canadians could boost the national economy by up to $32.3 billion a year. Augmented treatment of anxiety could see a $17.3 billion annual boost.

A large proportion of working Canadians currently have unmet mental health care needs that prevent them from working full or part time. Almost a quarter of Canadians living with a mental illness are unable to work because of their symptoms.

Issues around employment, mental health and mental illness can be complex, particularly when workplace stressors become a factor. To help address these issues, the Canadian Mental Health Association’s award-winning Mental Health Works program offers workshops for supervisors, managers and human resources professionals to learn strategies on creating supportive workplace and implement positive change toward improved psychological health and safety in your organization.

To learn more about Mental Health Works and how it can benefit the mental health of

your organization, visit the Mental Health Works website or contact this branch.