Here's an uncomfortable truth: the people responsible for keeping your workforce mentally healthy are struggling more than anyone else. The HSE's 2024 data reveals that healthcare workers - the very professionals delivering your EAP services, occupational health support, and mental health interventions - have the worst psychological wellbeing of any sector in the UK.
Healthcare workers scored 5.4 on the GAD7 anxiety scale and 6.2 on the PHQ9 depression measure. To put that in perspective, these scores are significantly worse than retail workers (who we know face enormous pressure) and tech workers (despite their well-documented burnout issues). We're asking people in psychological crisis to be the guardians of everyone else's mental health.
The data doesn't lie - but it raises serious questions
The HSE findings show healthcare consistently at the bottom of every wellbeing metric. Higher anxiety, higher depression, more stress-related absence, and crucially - lower job resources to cope with these demands. This isn't just about individual suffering; it's about system failure.
When your EAP counsellor is experiencing clinical levels of anxiety, or your occupational health adviser is battling depression, what does that mean for the quality of support your people receive? It's not about questioning their professionalism - healthcare workers are remarkably resilient and committed. But resilience has limits, and those limits are being tested daily.
Consider this scenario: your HR team calls the EAP provider because you've noticed increased absence in your marketing department. The person who takes that call, assesses the situation, and arranges support is statistically more likely to be experiencing mental health difficulties than the employees they're trying to help.
Why healthcare workers are burning out faster than everyone else
The JD-R (Job Demands-Resources) framework gives us a clear lens to understand what's happening. Healthcare roles are characterised by extreme job demands - emotional labour, life-or-death decisions, constant change, understaffing - combined with insufficient resources like autonomy, support, or recovery time.
But there's something unique about healthcare that makes this worse: the moral injury of being unable to provide the care they know people need. Whether that's an EAP counsellor with a caseload too large to give proper attention to each client, or an occupational health nurse rushing through assessments because there simply isn't time to be thorough.
This creates a vicious cycle. Poor wellbeing leads to higher turnover, which increases workload for remaining staff, which worsens wellbeing further. Meanwhile, the quality of external wellbeing services - the ones your organisation depends on - inevitably suffers.
What this means for your wellbeing strategy
If you're buying wellbeing services from providers whose own workforce is in crisis, you need to ask harder questions. Not to catch anyone out, but to ensure you're getting value and your people are getting genuine support.
Start by understanding how your providers support their own people. What's their staff turnover like? How do they measure and address burnout in their own teams? What job resources do they provide to help their workers cope with high emotional demands?
Look beyond the glossy brochures and case studies. Ask about caseloads, response times, and continuity of care. A provider might offer 24/7 access, but if their counsellors are overwhelmed and constantly changing, that accessibility means little.
Consider providers who demonstrate they understand the JD-R model - not just in the services they sell, but in how they manage their own workforce. Companies that measure job demands and resources scientifically, and act on what they find.
Building resilience in the system, not just individuals
The solution isn't to abandon professional wellbeing support - it's to choose partners who walk the walk. Some providers are getting this right by investing heavily in their own workforce wellbeing, using proper measurement tools, and being transparent about their approach.
There's also a strong case for bringing more wellbeing capability in-house where possible. Training your managers in psychological first aid, creating peer support networks, and building a culture where wellbeing conversations happen naturally - rather than only when people are in crisis.
This doesn't replace professional support, but it reduces the load on external services and creates more sustainable, ongoing wellbeing practices within your organisation.
The path forward
The healthcare sector's mental health crisis is a wake-up call for how we approach workplace wellbeing more broadly. It shows what happens when we focus on individual interventions while ignoring systemic issues - when we ask people to be resilient instead of creating resilient systems.
For your organisation, this means taking a more sophisticated approach to wellbeing strategy. Measure job demands and resources using proper scientific frameworks. Choose providers who demonstrate excellent workforce practices, not just good marketing. Build internal capability alongside external support.
Most importantly, recognise that sustainable wellbeing isn't something you can outsource entirely. The best strategies combine professional expertise with internal culture change, scientific measurement with human understanding, and individual support with systemic improvements.