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5.4 Mental Ill-health

The Prevalence of Mental Ill Health Within the Workplace

According to HSE UK, Statistics in Great Britain,2019 Work-related stress, depression or anxiety is
defined as a harmful reaction people have to undue pressures and demands placed on them at
work.

The total number of cases of work-related stress, depression, or anxiety in 2018/19 was 602,000,
a prevalence rate of 1,800 per 100,000 workers.

The number of new cases was 246,000, an incidence rate of 740 per 100,000 workers. The total
number of working days lost due to this condition in 2018/19 was 12.8 million days. This equated
to an average of 21.2 days lost per case.

n 2018/19 stress, depression or anxiety accounted for 44% of all work-related ill health cases and
54% of all working days lost due to ill health.

Common Types of Mental Ill Health

Anxiety and Depression

Definition – Anxiety

Anxiety is a feeling of unease, worry or fear. Everyone feels anxious at some point in their life,
but for some people it may be an ongoing problem.

Symptoms of Anxiety

Anxiety can have both psychological and physical symptoms.

Psychological symptoms can include:

• feeling worried or uneasy a lot of the time
• having difficulty sleeping, which makes you feel tired
• not being able to concentrate

• being irritable
• being extra alert
• feeling on edge or not being able to relax

• needing frequent reassurance from other people
• feeling tearful

ENSIGN | Unit IG2 – Element 5 – Physical and Psychological 23
Health