The last year has made it increasingly evident that prioritizing mental health inclusion is more critical than ever for organizations seeking to advance their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. On the backdrop of the pandemic and with a workforce collectively dealing with the trauma of a global illness — not to mention the record numbers of burnout that continue to affect our teams — we know from research that people are experiencing heightened diminished mental health at this moment.
It is important to spotlight why applying an intersectional lens to our mental health inclusion work is necessary, especially when it comes to racial equity.
In particular, professionals of color and Indigenous professionals and their experiences with mental health inclusion in the workplace. Although the research on race/ethnoculture and mental health is at best limited, and at worse both limited and heavily flawed, we know that People of Color and those from Black, Indigenous and Latinx communities, in particular, experience poorer health overall tied back to social and structural injustices and inequities.
We also know that while diagnoses for mental illnesses appear to be similar across racial/ethnocultural groups, access to essential mental health care and the quality of the care and support that is provided substantially differs due to racial inequities. In other words, Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) experience more serious mental health challenges as a result of racial inequities.
As you can see, our cultural identities can have a major impact on our experiences with mental health in the workplace. Given this, here are three ways for leaders to ensure that their workplace mental health inclusion efforts also address racial inequities.