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    Mental Health at Work by Susan Helgeland, Executive Director, Mental Health Association of North Dakota.

    Date: July 26, 2011, 11:30am – 1:30pm
    Location:
    CDHRA will meet the 4th Tuesday of each month at 11:30 AM at the Elks Lodge in the large meeting room where receptions and dances are held. Members will go through the buffet line in the restaurant and order as much or as little as they want and pay the cashier. Members will bring their tray into the large meeting room where the business meeting and presentation will take place.
    Event Type:
    Meeting
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    Mental Health @ Work by Susan Helgeland

    Does this sound familiar to you? “We have irritable employees. We miss too many deadlines. We have a lot of workers out ‘sick.’ Productivity is down because of workplace injuries and staff who are stressed.”
    Mental Health @ Work is a presentation of MHAND. The seminar provides employees with practical information about the connection between mental health and work. Employees may feel stressed because of what is happening on and off the job. They have to balance work, family, friends, community and self needs. Mental Health @Work addresses important issues related to mental health with a power point presentation, discussion and interaction. It focuses on the following objectives:
    1. Learn mind, body and soul interaction to achieve balance.
    2. Recognize the signs of workplace stress and anxiety including burnout.
    3. Develop strategies to successfully manage stress and conflict in the workplace.
    4. Identify community resources to assist employees in dealing with workplace stress.
    Untreated mental disorders impact workforce performance, productivity and absenteeism. One million employees miss work each day due to work stress. Each year, in a typical office of 20 people, 4 will suffer from a mental health condition. More workers are absent from work because of stress and anxiety than because of physical illness or injury. Individuals who are depressed but not receiving care for the condition consume two to four times the healthcare resources of other enrollees.
    95 out of 100 employees know that mental health is important to their overall health. However, employees often do not know the connection between mental health and work. A national survey conducted in July 2007 for the Partnership for Workplace Mental Health found that 36% of employees said, stress affects their productivity and the quality of their work. 33% said stress affects their relationship with their supervisors. Yet workers do not think employers place enough emphasis on mental health.

    Currently Susan Rae Helgeland holds the Executive Director’s position for Mental Health America of North Dakota (MHAND).   MHAND has two offices located in Fargo and Bismarck.  Susan has been with the organization for 21 years.

    Susan earned a Bachelor’s of Philosophy (BPh) Degree at the University of North Dakota (UND) and a Master of Science Degree in Public and Human Service Administration (PHSA) from Minnesota State University Moorhead (MSUM).  She is a charter member of the Region V Children’s Services Coordinating Committee (CSCC) and a founding member of the ND Human Rights Coalition and the ND Disabilities Advocacy Consortium. 

    Ms. Helgeland serves on the Governor’s Commission on Olmstead, the ND State Hospital Governing Committee and the Governor’s Planning Council on Mental Health.  She is President of the AgriWellness Board.

    Susan is the recipient of the Temple Beth El’s Humanitarian Award, the ND Advocate of the Year Award from Freedom Resource Center, the Child Advocate of the Year Award from the North Dakota Children’s Caucus and the Mental Health Service Award from the North Dakota Psychiatric Society,

    Susan is married to John Helgeland and they reside in Fargo, ND.