The Britain Brunei Business Forum (BBBF) held its first virtual event on Monday 4 October 2021 on the topic of Organisational Mental Health in a Pandemic.
The talk was presented by Mr Todd McPherson, Counselling Psychologist of Clarity Sdn Bhd. The event was moderated by Mr Allen Lai, Director – ASEAN & Corporate Affairs at the UK-ASEAN Business Council.
Chair of the BBBF, Mr Siva Subramaniam, in his opening remarks said that the topic is an important one, especially in the current Covid situation in Brunei where many are struggling to cope with the rise of infection rates, adapting to constant change and complying with new enforcements, while coping with work and personal lives. He also highlighted that the event was held to throw light on “World Mental Health Day” which takes place on 10 October and to embrace their aim for 2021 of: “Mental health care for all: Let’s make it a reality.”
Mr McPherson covered issues such as lockdown fatigue, anxiety and recognising the indicators of poor mental health. He gave helpful suggestions for promoting wellness and improving the work culture. The audience heard some interesting statistics on the effect that Covid has had on the stress levels of people working from home which underlined the need for more awareness and action to be taken in this area.
50 members of the BBBF attended the virtual event.