Regional State Administrative Agency's Mental Well-being Campaign

Regional State Administrative Agencies act as multidisciplinary expert organisations under the guidance of a total of eight different ministries and carry out legislative enforcement, steering and monitoring tasks in their regions. There are six Regional State Administrative Agencies and their staff work in 19 different locations. The nature of the work places high demands on the psychosocial and cognitive load on the staff. In this environment, promoting mental well-being has become a key theme.

In 2023, Regional State Administrative Agencies and Mehiläinen joined forces to launch a groundbreaking well-being campaign aimed at highlighting the importance of mental health and actively encouraging employees to take care of their own mental well-being. To gain a deeper understanding of the implementation of the campaign and its impact in the organisation, we interviewed Pirjo Kujala, Head of Development for Regional State Administrative Agency's administration and development services, who is also the national contact person for occupational health care.

What was the background to the campaign and why was it necessary?

Pirjo Kujala opens the discussion by highlighting the challenges brought about by the changes in working life. "Working life is constantly changing, which puts pressure on both employees and management. At Regional State Administrative Agency, we have found that mental health challenges have increased and are clearly reflected in sickness-related absences. Long-term absences are worrying and, in the worst case, can lead to incapacity for work. Therefore, supporting mental well-being and developing the management of work ability have been very important to us. The campaign was a natural continuation of this work and brought us new perspectives and tools."

What did the campaign year include and how was it implemented?

Kujala explains the implementation of the campaign in detail. "The campaign was designed in collaboration with occupational health care and built on monthly changing themes. Each theme was highlighted on our intranet through thematic information, blog posts and podcasts. Staff were also given challenges related to maintaining and improving mental health. The campaign had its own visual look, which made the news clearly different from the other news on the intranet. We also created a dedicated page for the campaign on the intranet, where all the materials were stored." The themes of the campaign were dealt with throughout the year from the perspective of management of work ability at the supervisor clinics. In addition, two surveys were carried out during the year to find out how employees experience mental well-being."

What was the best outcome of the campaign?

"The best thing about the campaign was its versatility and the fact that it was carried out in collaboration with our occupational health care service provider, where the conditions and challenges of our workplace are well known. The aim was to increase understanding of the importance of mental health and help everyone take care of their own and others’ mental health. The campaign helped to shed light on the interconnectedness of mental health issues and also offered new perspectives and ways of working," Kujala says.

What was the benefit of the campaign year from an employer’s perspective?

Kujala emphasises the benefits of the campaign for the employer. "With the campaign, dealing with mental health challenges has become more natural, and stigma, if there ever was any, has begun to fade. The campaign has highlighted the importance of defining what is reasonable and good enough, which is important in workplace discussions. In addition, the campaign has brought together different aspects of management of work ability and highlighted early support for mental health problems."

What impact can you see from the campaign implementation in your organisation?

"The campaign has highlighted the importance of mental health and provided practical tools. It has fostered conversation and helped us to find new ways of doing things. The material is still available and has been compiled as training material to ensure its impact continues. I believe that when issues and phenomena come to the fore and are discussed, we also start to find something new and better together ," Kujala concludes.

Interviewee: Pirjo Kujala, Head of Development, Regional State Administrative Agency

Published 1/2024