"What brings you to me? – I ask an open-ended question and then the employees explain their concern." This is how the initial consultation begins in confidential stress counseling, says Dr Monika Herzog. She has been working as a medical specialist with Boehringer Ingelheim's occupational health services since 2017. The topics with which employees turn to Monika are varied – but what they have in common is that they revolve around mental health: often around the question of how we integrate it into our working life.
Mental disorders can impact many areas of life, from relationships with family and friends to daily work. They affect one in eight people worldwide, including people here at Boehringer Ingelheim. The issues they bring to Monika include the psychological burdens of conflicts in the family or at work, ill relatives, their own mental illnesses, and addiction issues.
Boehringer Ingelheim's commitment to the wellbeing of its employees is also recognized by the Top Employers Institute with our certification as a Global Top Employer 2023, reflecting strong results for employee benefits in the fields of "wellbeing", "work environment" and "rewards and recognition".
"There is a strong need to shed a light on mental health at work and in life, and that is why I care so much about this field of work. I want to convey an understanding that mental disorders are medical conditions like any other; so that affected people are not stigmatized", explains Monika.
With combined strengths
Monika is a trained medical specialist in neurology and occupational medicine with additional qualifications for specialized psychotherapy and primary care in addiction medicine. Drawing on her years of clinical experience in the field of psychiatry and psychotherapy, she dedicates a lot of time to our employees: "up to one hour for the initial consultation, to give the participants the opportunity to open up and to describe the problem." The aim of stress counselling is first to map out the problem – to define the medical question, so to speak – and, if necessary, to make a diagnosis. The next step is to discuss what concrete offers of help could look like. Here, the stress counselling can draw on our holistic healthcare management, which includes measures not only for mental health, but also for physical and social health, as well as financial security. This also includes regular individual employee consultations with Monika.
Our occupational health services team looks at the employee's issue from a medical point of view; the individual employee consultation looks from a psychosocial perspective at supporting the employee with different offers. "We come together – always under the condition that we have been released from medical confidentiality – because it often makes sense to take different perspectives for the solution of a problem and to consider: what does a person need? How can I help him or her now?" One example is participation in company integration management. "Our goal is always to reintegrate our employees into the job, and I think it’s phenomenal to work on it as a team with combined forces," Monika sums up.
Support from within
The initial consultation with Monika Herzog is followed by an offer of further appointments. The aim is to show that there is someone to turn to who can provide low-threshold access. Monika explains: "I want to offer help, communicate when and how I’m available. I meet some people several times in a short space of time, and some at intervals of a few years. And it gives me great pleasure when I receive feedback from the employees saying that they are doing better or well again."
And there’s more to what Monika does. She spends half her working time on mental health counselling; the other half is filled with occupational health activities like medical checkups, aptitude tests, workplace inspections, and vaccinations, as well as medical travel consultation, and much more. Monika knows the company and, through its operations, gets to know the people and their needs, too. She can bring this back into the counselling. "This internal network is a huge advantage for Boehringer Ingelheim. I really enjoy looking after employees in a company in which we can drive measures together. Here, we can contribute ideas and the employees are heard. That's great."
Monika explains that a people-oriented corporate culture can achieve a lot beyond the specific offers. It’s about giving employees the opportunity to have honest, open, and confidential discussions. She wants her work to contribute to mental disorders being even better accepted in the working environment. What makes a good employer for Monika Herzog? Appreciation, compatibility of work and family, positive cooperation, and space for that the individual needs of employees. She finds all of that at Boehringer Ingelheim: "It is exciting for me to work for a family-owned company that lives and passes on clear values. And this includes being supported by the company during and after periods of illness and not having to fear for your job. On the contrary, we jointly consider how everyday working life can be reconciled with a longer lasting or chronic illness."
Dr Monika Herzog’s work is one example of what our occupational health service (OHS) offers - just one aspect of a confidential medical resource with specialist expertise in several areas of physical and mental health.