What are the diseases and professions most associated with mental health leave in the Ribeirão and Franca region?

In a context where technology, the internet and social networks demand quick responses and make it difficult to divide work and rest, knowing how to deal with mental health has become imperative not only for people but also for organizations. "We are, first and foremost, people. But the majority still cannot understand this aspect. (...) Even belatedly, we are beginning to understand what moves us, the value of emotions, support between colleagues, recognition, human relationships. And work is not a space separate from life. Work is one of the dimensions of life", says political scientist João Augusto do Carmo, author of the e-book "New NR-1 Advanced: the difference between large companies for the best results." You will read in this report: What are the emotional illnesses associated with absence from work? What are the professions with the most absences due to mental health? Emotional availability and social pressure are relevant factors. What explains the record number of absences due to mental disorders? How does a mental health disorder become a work accident? What are psychosocial risks and how do they affect companies? Aerial view of Ribeirão Preto, SP Reproduction/EPTV What are the emotional illnesses associated with absence from work? According to the Occupational Safety and Health Observatory, of the Public Ministry of Labor (MPT) and the International Labor Organization (ILO), the main illnesses associated with mental health at work in the main cities in the Ribeirão Preto region are: depressive episodes other anxiety disorders phobic-anxiety disorders Recurrent depressive disorder, reactions to severe stress, adjustment disorders and bipolar affective disorder also appear in the statistics, to a lesser extent. The statistics are linked to both absences motivated or not motivated by accidents at work. According to Marina Sticca, Associate Professor in the Psychology department at the Faculty of Philosophy, Sciences and Letters of Ribeirão Preto at USP, the severity of a mental disorder is not determined only by the name of the disease, but by the intensity of the symptoms, their duration, the impact on the person's life and how they respond to treatment. "To identify the factors that lead to mental illness, it is necessary to carry out a systematic assessment of the psychosocial risks present in the work environment", he explains. What are the professions with the most absences due to mental health? According to the survey, the areas with the highest incidence of absences due to mental health are those linked to hospital medical care, banks and retail trade. Activities linked to postal services and public administration also stand out in the largest cities in the region. Among them, some professions predominated. ?In Ribeirão Preto, where 2,984 absences were recorded in 2024, the highest rates of absence occurred among nursing technicians, security guards, office assistants and salespeople. The invisible evils of work for mental health Adobe Stock ?In Franca, with 1,561 leaves of absence, highlights include cashiers, office assistants, salespeople and shoe preparers - taking into account that the city is a strong shoe producing hub. ?In Sertãozinho, with 337 absences due to mental health, in addition to cashiers and salespeople, bank managers and cleaners were on the rise in the International Labor Organization statistics. ?In Barretos, where 402 absences were recorded, the highest rates of absence due to mental health occurred among nursing technicians, office assistants, as well as production line feeders. ?In Bebedouro, with 188 leaves of absence in the last survey, highlights include a bank manager, salesperson and fruit tree cultivation worker - the city is a strong orange producer. ?In Jaboticabal, production engineers, administrative assistants and industrial cooks were the predominant professions among the 155 cases of dismissal. NR-1: see what changes with the new rule on mental health at work Emotional availability and social pressure are relevant factors As seen in the professions mentioned, continuous interaction with the public is one of the main triggers for burnout, due to the need for emotional availability, according to Marina Sticca. "The common element between these occupations is the need to maintain a high emotional involvement with other people, often in the face of conflicts, complaints, suffering or constant demands", he states. She analyzes that the risk is greater when this contact occurs under high pressure and low organizational support. "Historically, Burnout Syndrome was described precisely in professionals who work directly with people, such as healthcare professionals, teachers and social workers. Currently, it is known that it also affects workers in banks, commerce, teleservices and services in general." For João Augusto, another issue that influences is the culture of aggressive criticism on social networks, which has migrated to the real world and mainly affects teachers, healthcare professionals and attendants, including episodes of disrespect. This pressure, added to unattainable goals in the commercial and banking sector, creates a fertile environment for the development of Panic Syndrome and Burnout. "People with professions that deal with the social area, exposure to episodes linked to violence or constant danger can trigger panic syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder, deep depression." What explains the record number of sick leave due to mental disorders? The significant increase cannot be reduced to a single reason, but to a combination of structural and situational factors. Professor Marina Greghi Sticca highlights that the post-Covid-19 pandemic period has intensified demands, overload and economic insecurity, affecting the balance between personal and professional life. Furthermore, there was progress in institutional recognition: in 2023, the updated list of work-related illnesses began to formally include Burnout Syndrome. Data visibility has also improved due to changes to the INSS registration systems. Since 2007, the Social Security Epidemiological Technical Nexus (NTEP) has allowed the body to identify occupational diseases even without the company issuing a Work Accident Report (CAT). "This change expanded the identification of cases by health services and facilitated their classification as an occupational disease, when there is a connection with work activity." According to João Augusto, the digitalization of life also counts, in which the speed of social networks and the excess of information overload the brain, which cannot deal with such simultaneous demand. "In the training sessions I carry out, many workers complain that they are forced to listen to messages from clients, on their cell phones, at speed 2.0, accelerating everyone's voice. This is the only way they can cope. And this, of course, is a factor in people getting sick." How does a mental health disorder become a work accident? In Brazilian legislation, the term "accident" not only covers sudden events, but also occupational diseases developed by working conditions. That is why, according to Marina, the INSS differentiates the common social security benefit (B31) from the accident benefit (B91). The latter is applied when the link between illness, such as depression or anxiety, and factors such as excessive goals or long working hours is proven. The mental impact also reflects on physical safety. Psychic disorders compromise cognitive functions such as attention, memory and concentration. "As a consequence, workers with significant psychological distress may be more likely to make operational errors or suffer accidents. In these cases, the accident registered by the INSS is physical, but the mental disorder may have contributed to its occurrence by reducing the worker's capacity for attention and judgment", says the USP professor. According to João Augusto, an excess of simultaneous tasks, the so-called cognitive overload, generates psychological, physical, emotional and social damage, which increases the likelihood of operational errors that result in physical accidents. "All of this is linked to mental illness, which can be serious and leave consequences." What are psychosocial risks and how do they affect companies? Psychosocial risks originate in the way work is organized and managed. João Augusto exemplifies these risks as the lack of autonomy, humiliating demands, harassment, isolation and the lack of clarity in communication. Marina Sticca reinforces that the severity of these episodes depends on the intensity and duration of the symptoms, requiring a systematic assessment of the environment to identify what is actually making the employee ill. It is in this context that the new regulatory standard (NR-1) requires companies to carry out Occupational Risk Management (ORM), including psychosocial factors and on an ongoing basis. "There is no logic in waiting to give a person the time to leave their job so they can feel happy", says João Augusto. For the political scientist, the first step for companies is to promote spaces for real listening, going beyond bureaucracy. "It is not a clinical assessment of the worker, their entire life, but whether the work itself can affect their psychological, emotional, social health. (...) It is necessary to promote an environment in which there is support, support, dialogue, clarity in the role, transparency, achievable goals, breaks, working hours without overload or excessive, actions that recognize the importance of each person in the company's day-to-day operations." See more news from the region on g1 Ribeirão Preto and Franca VIDEOS: Everything about Ribeirão Preto, Franca and the region