Register for free to
view the full innovation profile.
MH-Guru (mhguru.com.au) is a brief, online induction program aimed at everyone in an organisation, shown to decrease stigma and increase knowledge about mental health problems.
About
Mental Health Guru is a brief, online induction program aimed at everyone in an organisation. It provides information about depression and anxiety for all employees - encouraging early help-seeking, reducing stigma and providing training about responsibilities in the workplace. It helps organisations to appropriately manage mental health issues and reduce associated productivity losses. The program was developed by researchers from the Australian National University who have been developing online mental health programs since 2001, and was evaluated in a randomised controlled trial in 2015. The results showed that the program decreased stigma and increased employee knowledge about depression and anxiety, and that these effects were sustained after 6 months.
Key Benefits
Educates workforce about depression and anxiety, so that they: seek help early and appropriately for depression and anxiety; understand how common mental health problems can be managed in the workplace; and understand the legal obligations around managing mental health issues in the workplace. This benefits organisations by reducing absenteeism and presenteeism, increasing productivity, reducing workers compensation claims and increasing compliance with legal obligations.
Applications
Useful as a brief induction tool to set expectations around the management of depression and anxiety, to reduce stigma, and to educate employees on how to seek help early.