It’s time to address the elephant in the room: iHASCO launches brand new course to help anxiety management

@iHASCO, a market-leading provider of eLearning, has launched a brand new course to help with Managing Anxiety.

The company, who provide essential workplace health, safety and compliance training have extended their popular range of wellbeing courses to include this new title.

With anxiety affecting more people than ever before, it is time for employers to address the issue and provide additional support to help improve their employees’ wellbeing.

12.8 million working days are lost each year due to work-related stress, depression or anxiety, as documented by the HSE. On top of this, the Coronavirus pandemic has had a catastrophic effect on the population’s anxiety levels, with 56% of adults reporting that they feel anxious as a result of the pandemic, in a survey by the Office of National Statistics. With this in mind, it is vital that employers offer their workforce the support that’s needed to maintain their health and wellbeing. This will also have a positive impact on staff productivity and attendance.

“Releasing this course has been a wonderful thing for us, as anxiety is debilitating for so many people and our team are fortunate to be in a position to help others,” says Lottie Galvin, Studio Manager & Mental Health First Aider at iHASCO. “Anxiety affects all of us at some time in our lives, but for many it’s a daily burden, so we wanted to provide some simple tools that encourage people to take back control and reduce their own feelings of unease, worry or fear on a daily basis.”

“Employers can also use this course as a facilitator for some open conversations on the subject of anxiety, how it affects their employees, and what changes can be made in the workplace to improve staff wellbeing.”

The IOSH approved and CPD accredited Managing Anxiety course is 25 minutes long, and it’s packed with information about what anxiety is, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) as a problem-solving approach and it explains the technique of mindfulness as well as the nature and power of thought patterns. It also includes a range of simple and practical techniques to help reduce anxiety, with further additional resources to support learning.

Anxiety is not a new issue, rather it has not been widely spoken about up until now. The Coronavirus pandemic has raised questions about the mental wellbeing of the population, revealing common concerns of the public to include: catching the virus, returning to work or being made redundant. Talking more openly about anxiety is a positive move in recognising it as a widespread issue. Yet for those affected by extreme anxiety it can be incredibly lonely and many still suffer in silence. With no magic wand to remove anxiety completely, the next best thing is to improve awareness of it and to use simple tools to manage it. Training and education is key to encouraging more open discussions about anxiety and to help individuals manage it on a day-to-day basis. Employers that put managing anxiety on their agenda will not only be fulfilling their duty of care to employees, but will also be creating a more positive work culture.

iHASCO are encouraging employers to get in touch to trial the Managing Anxiety course for free, to see how it can be part of a simple and cost effective way to support employee wellbeing.