scholarly journals Actionable Items to Address Challenges Incorporating Peer Support Specialists Within an Integrated Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder System: Co-Designed Qualitative Study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Almeida ◽  
Annie Day ◽  
Bret Smith ◽  
Cynthia Bianco ◽  
Karen Fortuna

BACKGROUND Peer support specialists offering mental health and substance use support services have been shown to reduce stigma, hospitalizations, and health care costs. However, as peer support specialists are part of a fast-growing mental health and substance use workforce in innovative integrated care settings, they encounter various challenges in their new roles and tasks. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to explore peer support specialists’ experiences regarding employment challenges in integrated mental health and substance use workplace settings in New Hampshire, USA. METHODS Using experience-based co-design, nonpeer academic researchers co-designed this study with peer support specialists. We conducted a series of focus groups with peer support specialists (N=15) from 3 different integrated mental health and substance use agencies. Audio recordings were transcribed. Data analysis included content analysis and thematic analysis. RESULTS We identified 90 final codes relating to 6 themes: (1) work role and boundaries, (2) hiring, (3) work-life balance, (4) work support, (5) challenges, and (6) identified training needs. CONCLUSIONS The shared values of experience-based co-design and peer support specialists eased facilitation between peer support specialists and nonpeer academic researchers, and indicated that this methodology is feasible for nonpeer academic researchers and peer support specialists alike. Participants expressed challenges with agency restrictions, achieving work-life balance, stigma, and low compensation. We present actionable items to address these challenges in integrated mental health and substance use systems to potentially offset workforce dissatisfaction and high turnover rates.

10.2196/17053 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. e17053
Author(s):  
Margaret Almeida ◽  
Annie Day ◽  
Bret Smith ◽  
Cynthia Bianco ◽  
Karen Fortuna

Background Peer support specialists offering mental health and substance use support services have been shown to reduce stigma, hospitalizations, and health care costs. However, as peer support specialists are part of a fast-growing mental health and substance use workforce in innovative integrated care settings, they encounter various challenges in their new roles and tasks. Objective The purpose of this study was to explore peer support specialists’ experiences regarding employment challenges in integrated mental health and substance use workplace settings in New Hampshire, USA. Methods Using experience-based co-design, nonpeer academic researchers co-designed this study with peer support specialists. We conducted a series of focus groups with peer support specialists (N=15) from 3 different integrated mental health and substance use agencies. Audio recordings were transcribed. Data analysis included content analysis and thematic analysis. Results We identified 90 final codes relating to 6 themes: (1) work role and boundaries, (2) hiring, (3) work-life balance, (4) work support, (5) challenges, and (6) identified training needs. Conclusions The shared values of experience-based co-design and peer support specialists eased facilitation between peer support specialists and nonpeer academic researchers, and indicated that this methodology is feasible for nonpeer academic researchers and peer support specialists alike. Participants expressed challenges with agency restrictions, achieving work-life balance, stigma, and low compensation. We present actionable items to address these challenges in integrated mental health and substance use systems to potentially offset workforce dissatisfaction and high turnover rates.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maureen Snow Andrade ◽  
Doug Miller ◽  
Jonathan H. Westover

PurposeThis study offers a global comparative analysis of variables associated with job satisfaction, specifically work-life balance, intrinsic and extrinsic rewards, and work relations on job satisfaction for hotel housekeepers.Design/methodology/approachThe study analyzes these variants across 29 countries using International Social Survey Program data.FindingsFindings indicate significant differences in job satisfaction for hotel housekeepers across countries, lower job satisfaction for hospitality occupations compared to all other occupational categories, lower job satisfaction for hotel housekeepers than employees in other hospitality occupations, and a statistically significant positive impact of some elements of work-life balance, intrinsic and extrinsic rewards, and coworker relations on job satisfaction.Originality/valueThe hospitality industry is characterized by poor work-life balance, high turnover rates and limited rewards. Hotel housekeepers report lower levels of satisfaction than other hospitality workers in terms of work-life balance, pay, relationships with managers, useful work and interesting work. Housekeepers play an important role in hotel quality and guest satisfaction. As such, understanding and addressing factors contributing to job satisfaction for hotel housekeepers is critical for managers


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. e0256663
Author(s):  
Swathi Pai ◽  
Vathsala Patil ◽  
Rajashree Kamath ◽  
Mansi Mahendra ◽  
Deepak Kumar Singhal ◽  
...  

Background The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in 2019, has shocked the entire world. As an effort to control the disease spread, the Indian government declared a nationwide lockdown on March 25th, 2020. As dental treatment was considered high risk in the spread of COVID-19, dentistry became one of the most vulnerable professions during this time. Dental professionals had to face job layoffs, salary cuts in professional colleges, closure of private clinics resulting in huge psychological, moral, and financial crises. Studies during the previous and present pandemics have shown mental issues among health care workers necessitating institutional reforms, along with early care and support. A balance in the work-life amongst professionals is the key to better efficiency and, was majorly affected during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown due to sudden unexpected changes. Hence this study was conducted to understand the changes they underwent both at home and professional front with a hypothesis that physical and mental health, activities, relationship status, and workplace influence the work-life balance. Methods A pre-validated questionnaire survey was done on dentists across India. Structural Equation Modelling and path analysis were applied to the data collected. Results The results of the study supported the hypothesis that factors like physical and mental health, activities, relationship status, and workplace influenced the work-life balance directly. A significant imbalance was seen amongst the female dentists. Conclusion The present study proved the unpreparedness among dental professionals. Hence an evolutionary phase in every field with better working protocols, robust mental health support, and a focus on strategies to face future such emergencies is required.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-37
Author(s):  
Toshihiro Okubo ◽  
Atsushi Inoue ◽  
Kozue Sekijima

This paper investigates teleworkers' efficiency in Japan in the COVID-19 era by using unique survey data on telework. Many Japanese workers started teleworking during the pandemic and found both benefits as well as impediments. Overall, we find that telework experience and the work environment (e.g., having clearly specified tasks and a flexible working system), changes in work-life balance (e.g., working time), and good mental health improves teleworkers' efficiency.


2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 41
Author(s):  
Fanny YF Young

This study investigated the relationship of working hour, work-life balance and mental health conditions in full-time retail industry workers in Hong Kong, an area without standard working hour legislation, in a follow up study during reduction in retail sales. Two questionnaire surveys were conducted, one in 2014 and the other one in 2015. Each survey comprised 100 retail industry workers in the same retail industry area in an anonymous basis.  In 2014 the working hour was long (51.92 hours per week). During this reduction in retail sales there was a significant reduction in the originally long working hours (from 51.92 hours to 47.25 hours, p<0.0001), an increase in daily hours of personal or private activities (3.06 hours to 3.606 hours, not statistical significant), a significant increase in self-perceived work-life balance (from 3.76 to 4.51, p=0.0009), a decrease in number of workers having problems due to disturbed work-life balance, and a significant decrease in the high mental health score (from 18.93 to 15.36, p=0.0003) indicating improvement in mental health conditions. The findings provide scientific evidence for policy making, the working hour in an area without standard working hour legislation could be long. Reduction in working hour resulted in an improvement in work-life balance and mental health conditions.


2007 ◽  
pp. 117-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalie M. Schmitt ◽  
Andreas Fuchs ◽  
Wilhelm Kirch

2022 ◽  
pp. 1208-1221
Author(s):  
Gülseren Yürcü ◽  
Ülker Çolakoğlu

In this study, the concepts related to leisure and wellness perceptions will be discussed in order to provide the work-life balance of tourism workers. With a descriptive analysis, it will be discussed how leisure time evaluation and wellness perception contribute to the work-life balance of tourism employees as strategies to cope with work and non-work problems. The fact that the work-life balance of tourism employees is at an optimum level is of great importance for the tourism industry where business factor and service quality are critical. Factors such as uncertainty environment, low labor morale, and high turnover rate constitute the general business life characteristics of tourism employees. As a result, the effect of leisure and wellness perceptions of tourism employees on coping with these factors and establishing work-life balance will be discussed in the light of related literature.


2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 139
Author(s):  
Mamiko Takeuchi

This paper explores the relationship between work-life balance (WLB) policies and three indicators—job tenure, turnover rates, and new graduate retention rates in Japan—focusing on the careers of female employees. Cross-sectional analysis shows that firms with WLB policies, such as a full amount of maternity pay, are positively associated with female employee job tenure. Additionally, panel data analysis shows that the practices of family-care leave, family-care benefits, and flextime system, have an effect on the turnover rate of female employees. Moreover, the full amount of maternity pay has an effect on the retention rate of female new graduates. Finally, a first-differences analysis also finds a positive relationship between the maternity pay system and female job tenure. These results suggest that WLB policies, such as the full amount of maternity pay, family-care leave, family-care benefits, and flextime system, could produce positive outcomes for the careers of female employees.


Author(s):  
ANA ALICE VILAS BOAS ◽  
ESTELLE M. MORIN

Mental health, an important object of research in psychology as well as social psychology, can be determined by the relationship between psychological well-being and psychological distress. In this context, we search to understand: “How do compare mental health of professors working in public universities in an emerging country like Brazil with the one of professors working in a developed country like Canada?” and “What are the main differences in the indicators of mental health in work domain?”. This paper assesses psychological well-being and psychological distress for professors working in these two countries and test for their differences. The sample consists of 354 Brazilian professors and 317 Canadian professors. Data were collected through an on-line questionnaire assessing the following mental health indicators: anxiety, depression, loss of control, general positive affect and emotional ties. We compared the components of psychological distress and psychological well-being to analyse their relations. Additionally, we compared these components with work-life balance indicator. Reliability analyses demonstrated that all tested components are consistent to evaluate mental health. There are small mean differences between Brazilian and Canadian professors in all five components of mental health, but these differences are not statistically significant. Mean differences for work-life balance, gender, age, and bias of conformity are statistically different, although the size effects are small. Linear regression analysis, step by step, controlled for life events, showed that general positive affect, anxiety and emotional ties predict 31.5% of the scores of work-life balance. Additionally, we observed that Brazilian professors find more balance between professional and private life than do their Canadian colleagues. Promoting mental health is a challenge for public management sector, thus, public managers and governmental organizations can beneficiate from the studies of social psychology to improve work performance and the quality of the services offered to the society as well as to assist employees to improve their personal and professional life.


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