PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Shining a light on mental health in the profession REBECCA SANDFORD, PRESIDENT
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arlier this year, the Society surveyed practitioners in SA about their mental health and wellbeing. The survey was based on one run globally by the International Bar Association, and intended to help assess how we as legal practitioners are managing and maintaining our mental health, and what we can do (individually and collectively) to better support our mental wellbeing. The results are now in, and whilst more detailed analysis of the local and global survey outcomes will follow in due course, for now I wanted to share a few key findings with you (with many thanks to Zoe Lewis, Chair of the Society’s Wellbeing and Resilience Committee, for her assistance). It was startling, though not altogether surprising, to see that 47% of respondents advised that working in the legal profession negatively impacted their wellbeing, and almost 60% admitted to considering leaving the profession in the last two years because of mental health issues related to workload or work pressures. Key wellbeing threats include workload pressures, billing stress and profit-centric workplace cultures, bullying and harassment concerns, vicarious trauma (especially for those working in family, criminal and personal injury), perfectionism, compliance and regulatory stress, isolation, and difficulties switching off or sleeping - with over 70% of respondents reporting fatigue or disrupted sleep. The survey confirms how important wellbeing and resilience measures are for the health of the profession. It’s apparent that lawyers in SA unfortunately still feel strong stigma around admitting to struggling with mental health (reflective of the global survey responses, with 41% feeling they can’t discuss wellbeing issues with their employers), but I was reassured to see that 80% of respondents in SA believe our culture has become more open, even significantly more open, to discussing mental wellbeing over the last three years. Similarly, many positive aspects of working in the law were identified, including the rewarding nature of the work and the intellectual challenge, meaning, and purpose it can provide.
I’ve also become aware of some scary statistics through partnering with Breakthrough Mental Health Research Foundation as the President’s Charity this year, including that one in five Australians has a mental health issue, and more people between 15-44 years are currently dying from suicide than any other cause. Given lawyers can be predisposed to some of these concerns, not to mention the potential impacts of the events of the last 12 months (with significant ongoing business and personal uncertainty from the pandemic and attention on sexual harassment matters likely to have affected many of us to varying degrees), how we look after ourselves and each other remains a key focus for me, and is part of why I asked Gabrielle Kelly to be our guest speaker for this year’s upcoming Legal Profession Dinner.1 Though managing mental health and wellbeing is ultimately an individual journey, please remember that support and guidance is available - I encourage all practitioners to seek assistance (including from your GP or psychologist) as required, without guilt or shame for doing so. Given 25% of our survey respondents said they were not aware of available support services, I also want to remind Members about some Law Society services, which include: • LawCare (08 8110 5279) - legal practitioners or members of their immediate family, or law students, can anonymously arrange a session with Dr Jill to discuss any issues that are interfering or may interfere with work performance, including social and/or psychological problems, stress related to work or domestic situations, alcohol or drug dependency concerns, gambling issues, matrimonial or relationship problems, family crisis or career concerns. The Society makes a financial contribution to gap payments (for two sessions per practitioner per year), but is not provided with participant names or details. • Professional Advice Service - a volunteer panel of experienced lawyers (list here) willing to assist colleagues with
personal and professional problems, including professional standards/ conduct issues, legal practice/business advice, costs matters, or relationship with the Courts. • Young Lawyers’ Support Group - the Society, in conjunction with its Young Lawyers Committee, has established a group of practitioners to assist young lawyers who may feel the need for independent guidance from experienced colleagues. The list of practitioners who can be contacted directly by young lawyers is here. • Complaint Companion Service - up to an hour of free advice is available for solicitors who are the subject of a complaint to the Legal Profession Conduct Commissioner. For confidential enquiries about LawCare, or further information about any of the other services listed above, contact Annie MacRae at (08) 8229 0263 / annie. macrae@lawsocietysa.asn.au. Many of our Members operate in small or sole practice firms, which can exacerbate some of the difficulties and stresses of practice. Though not specifically directed to lawyers, the National Mental Health Commission’s evidence-based guidance for creating Mentally Healthy Workplaces during COVID-19, directed towards sole practice or small business (there is one for large/medium businesses as well), can be downloaded here. Similarly, Beyond Blue has developed the ‘Heads Up’ program to build better mental health in Australian workplaces, including a useful how-to guide for organisations to develop a workplace mental health strategy. Other resources are also available via the Law Society’s Wellbeing & Support webpage. I’m always open to discussing what can be done to better support our friends and colleagues in undertaking the important work we do. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with ideas or thoughts you have in this respect. B Endnotes 1 Registration now open, tickets available here.
July 2021 THE BULLETIN
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