Managing Mental Health Matters

1.

In this episode, John's offer to give Mark half the day off may not have been most appropriate response because:

He did not seek to understand the cause of Mark's distress
Rationale: Mark said he did not want to talk about it, so there was really no way for John to understand his distress.
The co-workers may resent having to cover for Mark
Rationale: While this may be true, it should not serve as the sole basis for John's decision making.
Mark may have interpreted the permission to go home as evidence that he is seen as a problem
Rationale: This could be true. It might have been better to ask the employee what he felt would be best for him at that moment.

2.

Rebecca should not have discussed the behaviours of an employee with a health condition with the manager, John

True
Rationale: Workplace behaviours are within the realm of management responsibilities and should be discussed as necessary for a resolution of issues. When the discussion crosses over to personal medical information, the discussion may be violated of human rights.
False
Rationale: Workplace behaviours are within the realm of management responsibilities and should be discussed as necessary for a resolution of issues. When the discussion crosses over to personal medical information, the discussion may be a violation of human rights.

3.

The duration for which an employer is obligated to accommodate an employee with a disability is:

Until the employee is feeling well again
Rationale: Like other chronic or episodic illnesses, it may be necessary to keep some of the accommodations in place after the employee feels will in order to prevent against relapse.
As long as medically necessary, or until such point is proven that an undue burden exists on the employer
Rationale: Like all accommodations, this is true for mental health disabilities too.
Longer than most physical disabilities
Rationale: This is not necessarily true. Some mental health issues last weeks or months while others occur episodically across a lifetime.

4.

The "rule out rule" implies that managers/employers should:

Protect employees with mental illnesses against pressures of changes such as transfers or promotions
Rationale: It may be considered discrimination to deny a promotion or transfer to an employee on the basis of disability. In addition, depending on the situation, it is possible that these changes could have a positive effect on mental health.
Not consider performance management when employees have a mental illness
Rationale: Supportive performance management can assist a person with a mental illness to stay on track, especially after an accommodation is in place.
Rule out the existence of underlying health conditions before disciplining
Rationale: Although discipline or performance management may be warranted, the rule out rule simply suggests that before you start down this path, you consider the possibility that a health condition is causing the behaviours you are witnessing.

Managing Accommodation: Episode Quiz