Promoting mental health and work ability through the development of mental health expertise and regional co-operation (MYÖTE)
Objectives
The project aims to
- strengthen and support employees’ psychological and social work ability and functional capacity,
- reduce mental health-related incapacity for work (sickness absence and new disability pensions) and, as a result, increase employment rates and productivity, as well as reduce the cost of incapacity for work, and
- provide information to support decision-making and the development of social welfare and health care services regionally and nationwide.
Results and impact
The project will draw up permanent regional operational models that are estimated to be effective for supporting mental health and enabling work communities to identify ways to strengthen the mental health of their personnel. The regional operating models increase co-operation between occupational health services and other health and social services actors in the treatment of mental health disorders (especially depression). The new operational model allows referring a mental health patient from other health care services to occupational health care for active measures for promoting work ability and supporting their return to work.
The operational models are created in such a way that, even after a crisis situation caused by the COVID-19 epidemic, they can be used as a means of maintaining and improving the work ability and functional capacity of people of working age. The project aims to strengthen the competence of workplaces and entrepreneurs to foster their own and their employees’ mental health. The project also aims to improve social welfare and health care actors’ competence and co-operation in promoting mental health, and to create increased operational and structural flexibility in organizations in the sector by building regional operating models.
Our experts
Pauliina Kangas
Hanna Hakulinen
Funding and project partners
The project is funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) along with the implementing parties. The project is mainly implemented by the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, with collaboration by the University of Helsinki, the University of Eastern Finland, and MIELI ry.
