Ever feel stressed and overwhelmed at work? Well, you are not alone. According to the 2021 Work and Wellbeing Survey from the American Psychological Association, 3 in 5 employees reported negative impacts of work-related stress, including lack of interest, motivation, or energy (26%). Over one-third of respondents reported emotional and mental fatigue. Of note, respondents reporting physical fatigue jumped to 44% – a 38% increase from 2019 survey results.
Worker stress and mental health was front and center in yesterday’s release of the U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, M.D. report, The Surgeon General’s Framework for Workplace Mental Health and Well-Being (“Framework”). The Framework provides workers and employers with a road map to address factors negatively impacting mental and physical health. It notes that 75% of the workforce reports at least one symptom of a mental health issue and 84% say that conditions at their workplace had contributed to at least one mental health challenge. The Framework goes beyond long hours, workloads and other common issues and calls out the impact of toxic workplace cultures on workers mental and physical health as well as on the organization’s performance.
There are times that advances in information technology should have helped save time and reduce stress, but instead have had the opposite effect. Yes, it is easier to access information today than ever before thanks to the internet, desktop computers and smart phones. But there can be too much information. Searching for credible facts or the best product at the best price often means spending time sifting through information from a seeming endless number of sources. This overabundance of information can lead to bad decisions or mistakes out of frustration to just be done. Or the response to a myriad of information is simply to procrastination. We cope as best as possible, at times wishing our brains had the processing capability of a supercomputer!
This Weekend Reading series begins with Focal Point, with articles on current healthcare news, including increases in hospitalizations of children, COVID vaccines requirements for children misinformation, insulin rationing, and Adderall shortages. Next check out Taking a Toll with a look at the impact of the workplace on mental health, preventable maternal deaths and challenges facing veteran and individual with disabilities when seeking healthcare. In Under the Radar, explore articles on a rare disease and abortion access, sexual assault related ER visits, advance directives for mental health and more! Last but not least, do not miss Matters of Time — and my personal favorite, Only You Can Prevent Sad Pumpkins!
I hope you enjoy the following:
1. Focal Point
- Surge in Pediatric Respiratory Viruses, Including RSV, Strains Children’s Hospitals Respiratory illnesses in children are climbing well before the typical busy winter season (The Wall Street Journal)
- CDC committee’s vote did not make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for schoolchildren (PolitiFact)
- Adderall shortage is so bad some patients can’t fill their prescriptions (The Washington Post)
- Insulin Rationing Common, ‘Surprising’ Even Among Privately Insured (Medscape)
- You Can Now Buy Hearing Aids Over-the-Counter. Experts Offer Tips for Consumers (HealthDay)
2. Taking a Toll
- U.S. surgeon general says workplaces are taking a toll on Americans’ mental and physical health (STAT)
- The Surgeon General’s Framework for Workplace Mental Health and Well-Being (Office of the Surgeon General)
- These Doctors Admit They Don’t Want Patients With Disabilities (New York Times)
- Health department medical detectives find 84% of U.S. maternal deaths are preventable (NPR)
- Blind to Problems: How VA’s Electronic Record System Shuts Out Visually Impaired Patients (Kaiser Health News)
3. Under the Radar
- A Rare Disease That Underscores the Importance of Abortion Access (Undark)
- A Remarkable Way for People With Mental Illness to Take Control of Their Care (Slate)
- Sexual assault related ER visits increase more than tenfold The rise in people seeking emergency medical care after sexual assault outpaces the growth of law enforcement reporting, study suggests. (University of MI Health)
- Your Hospital Room Could Affect Outcomes After Surgery (HealthDay)
- I Tried to Keep My Pregnancy Secret (The Atlantic)
4. Matters of Time
- Only You Can Prevent Sad Pumpkins Keep your Halloween masterpiece looking ghoulishly good with a few easy steps. (Atlas Obscura)
- Texas School Renovations Reveal a Teenager’s 1950s Purse Frozen in Time (Smithsonian Magazine
- Bandits are losing interest in robbing banks, as some crimes no longer pay (The Conversation)
- 1 dress, 8 weddings: Brides in this family have worn the same gown for 72 years ‘There was no question that I would become the eighth bride to wear the dress,’ said Serena Stoneberg Lipari, 27 (Washington Post)
Enjoy your weekend!
Best,
Suzanne
Suzanne Daniels, Ph.D.
AEPC President
P.O. Box 1416
Birmingham, MI 48012
Office: (248) 792-2187
Email: [email protected]
