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We reported recently how the U.S. Surgeon General has called mental health a top U.S. priority — and that the workplace is a key place to address these needs.

Indeed, the Surgeon General maintains a page on Mental and Emotional Well-being that lists “What Can Businesses and Employers Do?”

• Implement organizational changes to reduce employee stress (e.g., develop clearly defined roles and responsibilities) and provide reasonable accommodations (e.g., flexible work schedules, assistive technology, adapted work stations).
• Ensure that mental health services are included as a benefit on health plans and encourage employees to use these services as needed.
• Provide education, outreach, and training to address mental health parity in employment-based health insurance coverage and group health plans.

But what about actual business case examples? How are real businesses putting mental health plans into action — and what benefits do they carry?

The Partnership for Workplace Mental Health provides an excellent resource of Employer Case Examples.  They write: “Our Employer Case Examples database helps to facilitate the sharing of successful employer practices in key areas of mental health. Use this tool to identify ways to advance mental health at your company – and then come back to share your story!”

Not only does this data base provide an outline of the problem each business sought to address as well as a program description, it also highlights the ROI each business attained. Examples include:

• “Since implementing a specialized internal psychiatric disability management program, average lost work time for psychiatric short-term disability has decreased over 40% from the baseline in 2004. The total number of long-term disability psychiatric cases has also decreased from the program’s start by over 35%. The first six months of the Depression management program shows positive trends in the rates in which employees are receiving evidence-based treatments, symptom severity, absenteeism, and presenteeism.”
• “Several years ago, a data analysis… pointed out to… management that ‘mental-nervous conditions' were driving a larger than normal percentage of their health costs. A proactive integrated approach was created to address the disabilities associated with these conditions. The duration for claims has gone down and (the company's) percentage of mental claims is below their disability plan administrator's average for their book of business.”
• Another company saw “marked improvements in physical and mental health measures, days at work, and overall medical costs.”