Health Minister Mark Holland approved a well over $2 million investment in a “wellness” program designed for employees in his department aimed at addressing workplace stress and enhancing mental health.
Mr. Holland in a recent report to Parliament elaborated on the content of the so-called decompression program pilot project for frontline staff at Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada.
“Examples of topics covered during sessions include how to prevent burnout, strategies for coping with loss and change as well as approaches for enhancing wellness and psychological safety,” wrote Mr. Holland in response to an Inquiry of Ministry submitted by Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner, as first covered by Blacklock’s Reporter.
The program was developed in collaboration with mental health professionals and guided by a clinical advisory committee, according to the report.
Consisting of two-week online wellness courses collectively called a “decompression program,” the project has cost $2.8 million to date. It has been provided to 927 health department managers and employees, translating to a cost of over $3,000 per participant.
The curriculum is described as “a combination of psycho-education delivered by mental health professionals, group work and practical resources.”
Mr. Holland noted the program’s popularity and its adoption by other federal departments.
“A small pilot was conducted at Transport Canada in March 2023,” the report disclosed.
“As of December 6, 2023 a total 27 Transport Canada employees have participated in the Decompression Program including two executives.”
However, the report provided no details on the cost to Transport Canada of the counselling services offered.
Release of information on the wellness program follows an Inquiry of Ministry in 2022 that revealed expenditures on various stress management and wellness activities within federal departments, including yoga and seminars.
A report from the Association of Professional Executives of the Public Service of Canada (APEX) in the same year shed light on the significant levels of exhaustion (76 percent) and cynicism (39 percent) among federal managers.
“One may describe executives as having weathered the storm of the pandemic,” the association wrote in a summary of its survey.
“It is also evident some have come through better than others. Overall executives are bruised, weary, looking for relief and needing time to recover and refresh.”
Furthermore, APEX pointed out a significant sentiment among executives: “Executives indicate they are not being recognized for the level of effort and contribution they are putting forward.”
It emphasized that “reward is not limited to compensation.”
“Rather it is the frequent internal and external acknowledgement of their contributions,” the APEX summary said. “Feedback from peers and superiors is powerful.”
