I鈥檝e spent a lot of time talking about the need for聽allies and champions at work, and I think they聽will play an important role in the disability and聽mental health agendas for years to come.聽I can also see a need for health聽professionals, including therapists聽who work with organisations,聽to step in as allies for people with聽mental health issues or disabilities.

Allow me to meander a little, because聽I want to explain briefly about the聽different models of disability. Broadly,聽there are three models of disability聽鈥� the medical model, the charity model聽and the social model. The medical聽model works on the premise that聽people with disabilities or mental聽health issues are 鈥榖roken鈥� and we have聽to fix them 鈥� it focuses on what is聽wrong with the individual. The charity聽model concentrates on the need to聽鈥榟elp鈥� people with disabilities or mental聽health issues 鈥� it focuses on the聽helplessness of people with disabilities.聽The social model is different 鈥� it聽suggests that the way society is聽organised is what disables people.

Now, if we look at how health聽professionals can use these models聽as part of being allies, you鈥檒l see how聽the emphasis shifts from what聽someone can鈥檛 do because they are聽disabled, to what we can do to enable聽people. Under the social model of聽disability, we rethink how something聽is done to find a solution that enables聽someone with a disability or mental聽health issue. A good example would聽be, instead of giving a child a book聽to read when they have a vision聽impairment, we can provide an聽audio book, or if a person is a BSL聽user, we provide an interpreter.

This mindset changes the聽conversation about people with聽disabilities and mental health issues聽at work. We re-evaluate what鈥檚聽possible when we consider how to聽adjust a role or workplace to support聽people with disabilities. And this is聽where allies and champions within聽the medical profession are needed.聽Rather than focusing on the disability聽or mental health issue that someone聽may have, we need to switch to what鈥檚聽possible and help people聽 better聽understand what they can do, rather聽than what they can鈥檛.

If you鈥檙e wondering what on earth all聽this has to do with counselling within聽the workplace, there鈥檚 a connection.聽As a manager who has had聽colleagues working for me attend聽counselling sessions funded by the聽employer, the thing that I felt was聽missing was a connection back to me.聽Colleagues reported feeling that the聽sessions went well, and that they聽were getting support to focus on what聽they could do, or what they needed to聽enable them to do better 鈥� but that聽was the only way I got to understand聽what was going on. Managers don鈥檛聽need a running commentary on what聽is, of course, a confidential session.聽But I do think it鈥檚 important that we聽find ways to let managers know how聽they might be able to help to make聽adaptations and changes that would聽make a difference.

That鈥檚 where allies or champions聽can help 鈥� by having a connection聽with the manager, I think health聽professionals would then get more聽opportunities to have conversations聽about what managers can do to聽enable their team members to be聽more effective. Not all managers聽want to talk to the people who work聽for them about their mental health,聽or about a disability, often for fear of聽getting it wrong 鈥� but I reckon they鈥檇聽embrace talking to someone else,聽an ally or champion, who could be you聽鈥� who had knowledge of what their聽team members are going through.

To find out more about how聽organisations are using allies聽and champions in the disability聽agenda, you can read聽, from PurpleSpace.

David Caldwell is a Digital Accessibility聽Manager at Barclays and a Founding聽Ambassador of PurpleSpace.

Reference

1 https://www.purplespace.org/home?myhub&selected=2747

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