More people going to company therapist due to waiting lists in mental healthcare
Long waiting lists in mental healthcare mean that employees are increasingly going to the company doctor for a referral to a company psychologist, NOS reported after speaking to various occupational health and safety services. The large services all said that they’ve hired more psychologists in recent years.
Arboned increased the number of psychologists in its employ from five to 20 in 2.5 years. HumanCapitalCare grew from zero to 20 occupational and organizational psychologists in four years. PSION, which provides mental health services for organizations, doubled the psychologists in its staff to 90 in four years. Zorg van de Zaak and ArboUnie also said they hired more psychologists.
“Employers know that having someone wait at home for treatment is often more expensive than quickly providing the right help. Shorter absences or preventing absences pay for themselves,” Sandra Bleyenberg, an occupational and organizational psychologist at Arboned, told the broadcaster.
GPs also refer more people to company psychologists, Bleyenberg said. “The number of people with mental health issues is increasing and the waiting lists in regular healthcare are enormous. Burnout treatments are not reimbursed by regular mental healthcare. Then they quickly look for a company psychologist.”
That is somewhat concerning, she added. “It shifts more complex cases to the company psychologist, which we are not always equipped for. Sometimes we have to refer back.”
Employers organization AWVN confirmed the trend. “If the government allows waiting lists to increase, it is understandable that employers are looking for solutions themselves.”
Trade union CNV is pleased that employers are looking out for their workers’ mental health, but sees some risks here. “You must always have the guarantee that the care provider is independent,” chairman Piet Fortuin told NOS. “You bear your heart and soul to the psychologist and you also talk about your employer. Then that information should not end up with that employer.”
Maarten Lintsen, HR director at accountancy firm EY, is aware of that concern. The company employs two company psychologists to whom employees can speak anonymously, but it will also soon collaborate with an external psychologist platform “We know that a psychologist employed by us also feels as if they are part of EY. And that can be a barrier.”
He stressed that the two psychologists in EY’s employ never discuss individual cases, but they can identify trends that the employer can use. “For example, our psychologists noticed that expats more often have mental complaints because they do not have a social safety net. We started a community based on that. In this way, we are sharpening our HR policy.”
