In an exclusive interview to SAFETY4SEA, Dr. Pennie Blackburn, Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Director of Waypoint Maritime CiC discusses the importance of understanding cultural differences in communication styles within the workplace, especially in environments with strict hierarchies. She emphasizes the significance of psychological safety and suggests that establishing open dialogue requires skilled leadership, both in formal and informal communication channels.
While stress is a normal reaction to excessive work, Dr. Pennie Blackburn points out that it’s important for the maritime industry to take care of its seafarers by reducing stress and fatigue as much as possible. She suggests that using stress risk assessments can help companies strike a balance. This means helping people develop healthy ways to deal with stress while also tackling the reasons why they are feeling stressed in the first place.
SAFETY4SEA: From your perspective, what should be industry’s key priorities for healthy living while onboard?
Pennie Blackburn: I advocate for good communication between shoreside and seafarers. During Maritime Mental Health Awareness training, the conversations that shoreside and seafaring staff have about their respective roles in crew wellbeing are enormously fruitful. Seafarers identify the challenges they face and what they need, it’s often simple things like tasty food and timely supply of spares, but there seems little opportunity within routine operations for these conversations to take place. Consultation with seafarers improves perception of a culture of care. Of course, this does need some action responses for it to be effective, but active consultation with seafarers would be a great start. At Waypoint Maritime CiC, a not-for-profit organisation for maritime mental health, we offer assistance to evaluate wellbeing risks within the organization’s specific operational context and provide customised recommendations based on this assessment.
S4S: What are your suggestions to minimize health related issues and improve occupational conditions among seafarers, enhancing their mental wellness? Do you think there is need for regulatory update or best practices?
P.Bl.: The consideration of mental health into the regulations is very topical. A good principle is to aim for parity of mental health with existing physical health provisions. Although Title 4 of the MLC does already apply to mental as well as physical health, I would advocate for simple clarification of this, within the primary regulations. Whilst regulations ensure minimum standards, they may not promote optimal conditions on board. Guidelines that collate successful initiatives from the industry, those that make a tangible difference to seafarer wellbeing and demonstrate a return on investment, could incentivise a race to the top. Ideally a nuanced regulatory approach that combines minimum standards with aspirational best practice could drive a collective effort to enhance industry standards and continuous improvement, wherein companies are not just meeting minimum requirements but are motivated to excel.
S4S: In your view, has the industry handled the Mental Wellness effectively so far? What needs to be further done to support the mental dimension of wellbeing?
P.Bl.: The crew change crisis during the COVID-19 pandemic was a catalyst for interest in and awareness of the unique challenges of life at sea. While this is praiseworthy, responses have been varied. All too often we see industry reinventing solutions. I would urge all stakeholders in the maritime industry to treat mental health and wellbeing with the same rigorous due diligence as other areas of operational and safety management. As a minimum:
- Safeguard the principle of Do-No-Harm.
- Collaborate with an accredited mental health professional to ensure expertise from both mental health and maritime are combined. This will ensure that initiatives are both safe and effective.
- Always check the credentials of consultants and service providers to ensure they have appropriate skills. Ask them to provide details of their qualifications, professional accreditation, and critically legal liability insurance.
It can be challenging for industry partners to know which services and providers represent best practice in the field of mental health. At Waypoint Maritime CiC, a not-for-profit organisation for maritime mental health, our mission is to support the maritime industry, navigate these complexities.
S4S: Collaboration is the new fuel: How can industry stakeholders best collaborate in support of mental wellness? What is your advice?
P.Bl.: I am a huge advocate of collaboration; the best ideas often come from sharing diverse knowledge and experience. At Waypoint Maritime CiC, we aim to work alongside industry experts to leverage professional expertise in mental health and wellbeing to adapt what we know works in promotion, prevention, and response to fit within the unique context of the maritime industry. The exchange of challenges, insights, and successful initiatives amongst stakeholders, be they seafarers and their professional bodies, shipowners, operators, welfare support organisations or mental health professionals, are an exciting way to collate best practice guidelines. Waypoint Maritime CiC has an open invitation for all industry partners to work with us and we would be delighted to host best practice seminars in a spirit of continuous learning.
S4S: Why is psychological safety considered vital in the maritime sector? How can the maritime industry prioritize psychological safety to create a work environment where individuals feel safe to express themselves?
P.Bl.: The reporting of safety concerns, near misses as well as issues of wellbeing all rely on a culture in which everyone is able to speak up or speak out. Assertiveness, saying something which might be considered criticism or raising concerns about unsafe situations, and problems is vital to safe operations. Different cultures have varying norms and communication styles that impact how people express themselves in the workplace, particularly within a strict hierarchical structure. Psychological safety is not something that can be taught, imposed, or mandated; it’s an outcome or a metric which points to the culture of a company and the vessel. Establishing a culture in which open dialogue is encouraged, requires skillful leadership on board, options for formal and informal channels of communication and company policies which not only assure people that no negative repercussions will follow; but also demonstrates the value that raising concerns add to improving safety and wellbeing.
S4S: According to studies, fatigue and stress are considered as major areas of concern with regards to seafarers’ health. What is your feedback? How can we address these issues to support seafarers’ wellness?
P.Bl.: With stress linked to various physical and mental health problems, reported average levels of stress among seafarers is concerning. Studies also indicate that about 66% of people with a diagnosable mental health problem believe that work related stress contributed. Imagine what proportion we could prevent if we addressed the causes of stress. Promoting good coping skills and strategies is valuable, Waypoint Maritime offers training and other services for this purpose. However, it’s important to remember that stress is a normal response to excessive demands or perceived threat. It’s crucial for the industry to exercise duty of care through mitigating the causes of stress and fatigue wherever practicable. The stress risk assessments we offer can support companies to achieve this balance. A balanced approach, cultivating good coping skills combined with addressing the root causes is key to an effective strategy.
S4S: What is your key message to industry stakeholders and people onboard to foster their resilience?
P.Bl.: Seafarers are professional problem solvers, often demonstrating considerable resilience. This can mean it’s hard for seafarers to acknowledge they are also human and recognise that life stress and operational demands can take their toll. If we remember that we all have limits, then we look at what conditions support seafarers to thrive on board. From what seafarer’s tell me, operational demands seem to keep increasing with less and less opportunity for rest, recuperation, social interaction, and shore leave and that living and recreational facilities and spaces on board have been progressively sacrificed to maximize cargo space and prioritise efficiency and productivity. To remain sustainable, we also need to prioritise crew welfare and wellbeing. There is plenty of evidence in other sectors that a focus on staff wellbeing delivers considerable return on investment, so a balanced approach can be a win-win.
The views presented are only those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of SAFETY4SEA and are for information sharing and discussion purposes only.
