Interventions to support the management of work-related stress (WRS) and wellbeing/mental health issues for commercial pilots

AbstractResearch indicates that sources of work-related stress (WRS) impact on the physical, social, and psychological health of pilots. Furthermore, specific features of the job can increase a pilot ’s risk in relation to developing a mental health (MH) issue. It is impossible to remove all stress from the work life of pilots. A high stress situation may not necessarily be detrimental to the person, once they have learned to cope with it in a healthy manner. Nonetheless, risk pertaining to WR S need to be effectively managed by a pilot’s employer. Therefore, it is important to identify solutions at an airline and pilot self-management level. This paper reports on the findings of human factors research undertaken with commercial pilots pertaining to work-related stress (WRS) and its imp act on wellbeing, performance, and safety. The findings of a series of co-design workshops and a follow-up anonymous survey were analysed to identify potential solutions at (1) an airline and (2) pilot self-management level. Potential solutions are framed in relation to six impact scenarios. Further more, they are located within the existing regulatory framework, including the latest implementation rules (IR), acceptable means of compliance (ACM), and guidance material (GM) as outlined by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA2019). Proposed interventions should promote wellbeing and positive mental health while also addressing suffering and mental ill health. Airline intervention...
Source: Cognition, Technology and Work - Category: Information Technology Source Type: research