UBC offers a range of programs and services in support of mental health – from programs to reduce stress to training sessions on how to help co-workers struggling with depression.
These programs are offered free of charge to UBC departments and units, both on and off of the Vancouver campus and the Okanagan campus. Click on the training session titles to learn more or to request a session for your workplace. Live, facilitated workshops and webinars on various topics for individuals can be found here.
Please allow a 4-week runway for bookings for our training team wherever possible.
Training and workshops for staff & faculty
Positive coping strategies: Supporting your mental health (virtual option)
We all have go-to habits that we turn to in times of high stress or challenge, but are these habits working for you or against you? Our mental health can greatly be supported and maintained with the help of positive coping strategies, however it can be tough to identify the right ones, and to stick with them. In this session, participants have the opportunity to learn about concepts like resilience and coping while testing out coping practices that have been shown to support mental health and wellbeing.
Audience: Staff and faculty.
Time: 1 – 1.5 hour
Click here to request this training
Understanding mental health: How to support yourself and others (virtual facilitated and self-paced)
Understanding mental health can be difficult. Learning how to support someone who might be in a mental health crisis can be even more challenging. The goal of this session is to increase mental health literacy while providing tools and skills to respond effectively in a caring and respectful way.
Participants will:
- Learn to better understand mental health and mental illness
- Understand structural and social stigma as barriers to seeking help
- Learn how to respond when concerned about a family member, friend or colleague
Audience: Staff and faculty, particularly those in front-facing or first-responder roles.
Time: 1.5 Hours
Click here to request this training
Self & Community Care: Building skills to manage stress (virtual facilitated and self-paced)
We don’t always take the time to care for and nurture ourselves and we sometimes require support in integrating relaxation and our personal needs into daily life. This session focuses on increasing mental health literacy through self-care for individuals. Participants will learn about the body’s stress response and how to identify these responses in themselves. They will have an opportunity to take a stress index, explore what self-care means to them and identify key UBC resources that can be engaged to support work life integration and positive mental health.
Audience: Staff and faculty.
Time: 1 Hour
Click here to request this training
Understanding your Employee and Family Assistance Program (virtual facilitated and self-paced)
Offering expert information and immediate support resources to help with work, health and life challenges, the EFAP provides both short-term clinical counselling and work/life consultations to all eligible UBC employees and their dependents. This presentation provides an overview and detailed explanation of all services and access information.
Audience: Staff and faculty.
Time: 15 Minutes
Click here to request this training.
Preventing Burnout: Managing stress, emotions and our tendency to give (self-paced)
Feel like you're running on empty? Finding it hard to say no? Struggling to set effective boundaries? You might be at risk of burning out. In today's world, we are pulled in so many directions that it can leave us feeling exhausted and detached. This session will examine the very real impact of a variety of factors on our mental health, and explore the signs and indicators of burnout. Take away a set of supportive strategies for recognizing and preventing burnout before it takes hold.
Audience: Staff and faculty
Click here to enroll for self-paced learning
UBC Wellbeing Resources Overview (virtual)
This presentation provides an overview of all UBC HR’s health and wellbeing services and resources that are avaiable to UBC faculty, staff and post-doctoral fellows ( award-receipts and employees).
Audience: UBC faculty, staff and post-doctoral fellows (award-receipts and employees)
Time: 15 Minutes
Click here to request this training.
Supporting Resilience
What does resilience mean to you? How do you navigate change and challenge?
The idea of resilience is one of increasing importance, especially during times of difficulty. Resilience is foundational to engaging effectively with stress, as well as enhancing our capacity to cope with and recover from challenges. Most importantly, resilience is key in maintaining wellbeing. The good news is that resilience is not only something we already possess but something that can be strengthened over time. During this interactive workshop, participants will:
- Reflect on definitions of resilience and its importance
- Identify the three core components of resilience
- Learn about evidence-informed strategies and practices to strengthen resilience
- Learn about relevant resources and services that are available to support resilience and wellbeing
Audience: Staff and faculty.
Time: 1 Hour or 1.5 hours
Mindfulness and the benefits at work (self-paced only)
Mindfulness is quickly becoming a popular tool to improve both mental health and overall wellbeing. But what is it exactly, and how can it be of use in the workplace? In this session you and your team will learn about the basic elements involved in mindfulness practice and how current UBC research has uncovered a link between mindfulness practice and stress, interpersonal relationships, conflict, emotional reactivity, energy, productivity and much more.
Audience: Staff and faculty.
Click here to enroll in self-paced learning
The Working Mind: workplace mental health training for faculty & staff (virtual option)
Established by the Mental Health Commission of Canada, the Working Mind is an evidence-based training program designed to address and promote mental health and reduce stigma in a workplace setting. It includes scenario-based practical applications, custom videos of people with lived experience of mental illness, participant reference guides, and related handouts. The program is available in two versions: one for managers and one for employees.
Audience: UBC faculty and staff
Time: 5 hours (can be delivered over multiple days)
Participants will:
- Learn about the basic concepts, risk factors and causes of mental illness and mental disorders
- Gain the confidence, tools and resources to support colleagues who may be experiencing mental health problems or illness
- Learn about the Mental Health Continuum Model, how to observe changes in mental health, and how to take appropriate action
- Develop resilience and health-coping strategies
- Build their mental health literacy to help recognize, support colleagues with mental health challenges in the workplace
Mental Health First Aid
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is the support provided to a person who may be experiencing a decline in their mental well-being or a mental health crisis.
Course participants will learn how to recognize signs that a person may be experiencing a decline in their mental well-being or a mental health crisis and encourage that person to:
- Talk about declines in their mental well-being
- Discuss professional and other supports that could help with recovery to improved mental well-being
- Reach out to these supports
- Assist in a mental health or substance use crisis
- Use MHFA actions to maintain one’s own mental well-being
Audience: Staff and faculty, particularly those in front-facing or first-responder roles.
Time: 8 Hours (blended instruction, self-directed & webinar)
Understanding your UBC benefits
Do you know what is covered under your benefits plan? Book this session to learn:
- Which benefits you are eligible for
- The cost and coverage of your benefits
- How to make claims using your benefits
- What the Employee and Family Assistance Plan offers and how to access these resources
- Who to contact if you have questions
Audience: Staff and faculty
Time: 1 hour
Click here to request this training.
Know before you go: Understanding your Travel Benefits
Join UBC Benefits Administrator, Janet McHugh, in this 1-hour session on understanding your travel benefits.
Audience: Staff and Faculty
Time: 1 hour
Click here to request this training.
Training and workshops for managers
Supporting Mental Health in the Workplace for Managers and Supervisors (required training)
In January 2023, UBC launched an important required training for managers and supervisors called Supporting Mental Health in the Workplace for Managers and Supervisors. This training is currently available in the Workplace Learning ecosystem (WPL).
Developed for people leaders, this required mental health training will help leaders manage and support their teams during challenging times and ensure they are aware of their responsibilities to teams and direct reports. At UBC, we are committed to the mental health and wellbeing of our community that is why we offer a range of programs, training and resources to support teams – this training is yet another aspect of UBC strategic efforts to embed wellbeing into our workplaces.
Mental health literacy is an ongoing effort, and this training is one step in a long journey that managers and supervisors can take to build a psychological healthy and safe workplace. Managers and supervisors can revisit and complete this course at any time, including access to the additional resources and toolkits.
Supporting Resilient Teams: Recognizing and managing burnout (self-paced)
Feel like you're running on empty? Has your team's capacity reached its max? Concerned about the ability of your team to sustain this level of work and stay well? Your team might be at risk of burning out. In today's world, we are pulled in so many directions that it can leave us feeling exhausted and detached. This session will examine the very real impact of a variety of factors on our mental health, and explore the signs and indicators of burnout that leaders should be aware of. Take away a set of supportive leadership strategies for recognizing and supporting burnout prevention within teams.
Audience: Managers, supervisors, team leaders
The Working Mind: workplace mental health training for managers (virtual option)
Established by the Mental Health Commission of Canada, the Working Mind is an evidence-based training program designed to address and promote mental health and reduce stigma in a workplace setting. It includes scenario-based practical applications, custom videos of people with lived experience of mental illness, participant reference guides, and related handouts. The program is available in two versions: one for managers and one for employees.
Audience: UBC managers and supervisors
Time: 7 hours (can be delivered over multiple days)
Participants will:
- Learn about the basic concepts, risk factors and causes of mental illness and mental disorders
- Gain the confidence, tools and resources to manage and support employees who may be experiencing mental health problems or illness
- Learn about the Mental Health Continuum Model, how to observe changes in employees along the continuum, and how to take appropriate action
- Develop resilience and health-coping strategies
- Build their mental health literacy to help recognize, manage and support colleagues with mental health challenges in the workplace
Services
Consulting
The Workplace Wellbeing team provides consulting services (to both UBC Vancouver and UBC Okanagan) that are grounded in evidence-informed approaches and aligned with advancing UBC’s strategic commitments. If you would like to work with one of our Workplace Wellbeing Consultants, please complete the request form below and one of our team members will follow up with you.
Click here to request consulting
External Vendors
If you are a presenter, trainer or workshop provider and would like to work with us, please fill in this External Proposal Form.
Contact us
We’re available to provide informative presentations regarding mental health resources and support on and off-campus. Email Erica Altomare, Workplace Wellbeing Learning Specialist, for more information
Please email Amanda Swoboda for mental health training and programs at the UBC Okanagan Campus.