COMMENT


WORDS DR LUCY RAT TRIE


MAKE MENTAL HEALTH A PRIORITY


Risk management is fundamental to travel in the energy, marine and mining sector, but duty-of-care must also extend to the psychological effects of travel


from families, navigating new languages and cultures, and, in some cases, working in environments with an unnecessary machismo, where emotions are taboo. During an SOS call I took recently, the worker described their close confinement conditions as “feeling like I’m in prison”. As well as all of this, there are the challenges of finding desirable work, satisfactory pay and rewards, as well as job security. When you take into account the above factors, and layer on top the arduous travel, and bad weather that can leave staff and contractors stranded, it becomes important to include mental health in the travel agenda. From a travel manager’s perspective,


T


it’s no surprise that physical health from a safety angle is high on the agenda, particularly when transporting people. But as well as the physical nature of these challenges, the psychological effects of travel now need to be looked at. After all, human errors can be amplified in this high-risk environment.


WHY CARE? Mental health encapsulates a person’s social, emotional and psychological wellbeing – we experience it with anything from


HE ENERGY, MARINE AND MINING (EMM) sector, and particularly oil and gas, is synonymous with a demanding work environment. There’s the job itself, time spent away


“TRAVEL, WHETHER


IN BETWEEN, PLANNING, WAITING OR IN MOTION, IS FULL OF TOUCHPOINTS


THAT PUSH EMOTIONAL OR EXHAUSTION RED-ALERT BUTTONS”


vitality, positivity, inspiration, resilience and accuracy to emotional awareness (for example, please transport me with this work colleague). Mental ill-health, however, affects one in four people every year and, based on my consultancy work, I believe the statistic is higher within the EMM sector. It impacts how we view ourselves, our interpretation of the world, interactions, clarity of thought, ability to deal with workload and make sensible decisions. Unaddressed psychological burdens need


to be addressed, and travel managers can play their part in minimising risk; travel, whether in between, planning, waiting or in motion, is full of touchpoints that push emotional or exhaustion red-alert buttons. Travel managers should also develop


programmes that enable the traveller to self-manage sustainably, by spotting symptoms, recognising warning signs and sticking to action plans with the ultimate goal of having a happy mind. They can mitigate the intensity of travel factors (such as frequency, duration, quality) through existing booking systems with specified threshold points and red flag warnings. Interactive travel platforms can build in regular sense-checks and subsequent prompts to encourage people to take necessary steps and stay on top of their mental health. These types of successful strategies


are expert-led and evidence-backed, designed to stimulate motivation, enhance knowledge, provide capability in an interactive, pragmatic and fun way. Don’t get left behind as the rest of the world continues to embed mental health into their company cultures.


Dr Lucy Rattrie, a chartered psychologist, is founder and chief executive of Creating Sona


(creatingsona.com) 10 BBT ENERGY, MARINE & MINING SUPPLEMENT 2019 In association with


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