Welcome to our second issue of Re:think, a new newsletter from the McKinsey Quarterly. Every two weeks, we’ll bring you fresh ideas from our partners in 700 words or less. This is the sound of McKinsey thinking out loud—inspiration from people devoted to solving the toughest business problems.

World Mental Health Day was October 10th, taking place yet again against the backdrop of what seems to be a never-ending pandemic. The COVID-19 crisis has taken a severe toll on our collective psyche. Yet there is reason to hope. I’m sharing three points to inspire each of us to be better mental-health advocates for our families, our communities, and our workplaces.

Mental health touches all of us. Half of all people will have a mental-health or substance-use disorder during their lifetime. That could mean you, your loved ones, or your neighbors. As a leader, it could also mean much of your workforce. Unfortunately, we often aren’t aware when someone we care about is dealing with a mental-health challenge, just as others close to us may not be aware if we are struggling. This is a terrible paradox: at a time when people are most in need of help and a strong support network, stigma prevents them from reaching out. For example, in one recent McKinsey survey, 37 percent of employees with mental illness and 52 percent of employees with a substance-use disorder indicated that they would avoid treatment because they didn’t want anyone finding out about their condition. Can you imagine anyone with asthma or diabetes avoiding care for fear that others might find out about their condition? Why is this acceptable with mental health?

Mental health and physical health are inextricably linked. You can’t have strong physical health without strong mental health. Our analysis of health-insurance claims data shows that people with chronic physical-health conditions have worse outcomes when they also have an unmanaged mental-health condition; medical expenditures can be four times higher. For example, consider the toll that unmanaged depression can have on a patient with diabetes, inhibiting critical self-care and preventive care. Or think of the profound physical impact that social isolation and loneliness can have on high blood pressure, heart disease, and depressed immune systems. Yet we are still plagued by a two-tier system of health coverage, where it can be more expensive and more challenging to access adequate mental-health care than physical care, and where the two sides are rarely integrated. Again: Can you imagine a world in which your doctor didn’t check your heart rate or blood pressure at your annual physical?

Why is it acceptable not to perform a regular depression screening? Or a regular psychosis screening in teenagers?

There is reason to hope. Effective, evidence-based treatments exist that can allow people with behavioral-health conditions to live productive and fulfilling lives. And there are early interventions that can help reduce environmental-based triggers and prevent the onset of certain mental-health conditions. We must figure out how to scale these. There is also growing attention on mental health globally—increased philanthropy and public-sector funding, a greater number of successful public figures sharing their struggles, greater priority given to behavior-health conditions on research agendas and CEO agendas. For example, a majority of employers report that they are increasing their mental-health resources this year. All of this should give us hope. And hope is so important for those facing mental-health challenges. Hope itself is a strong predictor of mental health—having it helps build resilience and makes recovery possible.

Everybody knows somebody who has been affected by mental illness or a substance-use disorder. For me, that person is my brother, who has struggled bravely with a mental-health condition for many years. I want to give him hope—hope that he is not alone, hope that there is a path to recovery. Whether we like it or not, the COVID-19 pandemic has thrust mental health into the spotlight, so now is our chance to do something about it. There are practical actions that any organization leader can take: introduce mandated mental-health trainings for managers and employees; commit to parity for physical and mental health in the health plans, EAPs and supports offered; implement clear performance tracking against mental-health goals; openly share your own experiences with mental health; or simply ask someone how they are doing. We can all make a difference. We can all inspire hope.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Erica Coe is a partner in McKinsey’s Atlanta office and co-leads the Center for Societal Benefit through Healthcare.

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