Wellness VS. Psychological Health & Safety: What’s the Difference?
What’s the difference between Wellness and Psychological Health & Safety?
I often see these two terms used interchangeably in workplace conversations, but while wellness and psychological health and safety are closely related, they aren't the same thing. Understanding their distinctions is integral to building healthier, more productive workplaces.
Wellness refers to a holistic approach to an individual's overall health, inside and outside of work. It includes multiple dimensions: physical, mental, emotional, social, spiritual, occupational, financial, and environmental.
An individual’s wellness is shaped by both personal habits and external influences, including (but not limited to) their work environment.
Psychological Health and Safety, on the other hand, is more workplace-specific. According to the CSA Group's National Standard of Canada, PH&S is about creating an environment where employees feel safe to speak up with questions/ideas, voice concerns, and acknowledge mistakes without fear of judgment, retaliation, or negative consequences.
In summary…
Wellness is individual-focused and PH&S is organizationally driven. A psychologically healthy and safe workplace forms a foundation that supports wellness.
Within a psychologically healthy and safe culture, employees can make mistakes and take the time to closely evaluate and learn from them, contribute ideas, and challenge the status quo respectfully. This in turn allows more opportunity for innovation, and maximizes productivity by encouraging employees to build services, solutions, and gadgets that are new and novel.
A few resources to learn more:
In British Columbia:
Check out WorkSafeBC's Psychological Health and Safety: A Framework for Success. This document highlights the most common psychosocial hazards and suggests helpful controls to put in place.
Across Canada:
Explore the CSA Group's National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace. A fantastic document, which includes 13 psychosocial factors for organizations to uphold in order to foster PH&S.
What’s the difference between Wellness and Psychological Health & Safety?
I often see these two terms used interchangeably in workplace conversations, but while wellness and psychological health and safety are closely related, they aren't the same thing. Understanding their distinctions is integral to building healthier, more productive workplaces.
Wellness refers to a holistic approach to an individual's overall health, inside and outside of work. It includes multiple dimensions: physical, mental, emotional, social, spiritual, occupational, financial, and environmental.
An individual’s wellness is shaped by both personal habits and external influences, including (but not limited to) their work environment.
Psychological Health and Safety, on the other hand, is more workplace-specific. According to the CSA Group's National Standard of Canada, PH&S is about creating an environment where employees feel safe to speak up with questions/ideas, voice concerns, and acknowledge mistakes without fear of judgment, retaliation, or negative consequences.
In summary…
Wellness is individual-focused and PH&S is organizationally driven. A psychologically healthy and safe workplace forms a foundation that supports wellness.
Within a psychologically healthy and safe culture, employees can make mistakes and take the time to closely evaluate and learn from them, contribute ideas, and challenge the status quo respectfully. This in turn allows more opportunity for innovation, and maximizes productivity by encouraging employees to build services, solutions, and gadgets that are new and novel.
A few resources to learn more:
In British Columbia:
Check out WorkSafeBC's Psychological Health and Safety: A Framework for Success. This document highlights the most common psychosocial hazards and suggests helpful controls to put in place.
Across Canada:
Explore the CSA Group's National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace. A fantastic document, which includes 13 psychosocial factors for organizations to uphold in order to foster PH&S.