How Important is Mental Health to Seafarers

In relation to seafarers, how important is mental health?

This question was answered by Neil Beckwith, the Senior Claims Executive of the UK P&I Club:

Mental health, as far as seafarers are concerned, what we decided to do, was to analyse our own claims statistics over a 10 year period. Our research found that between 2006 and 2016, 80% of the mental health cases that the club dealt with, were related to mental health illnesses. From that, we found that anxiety and depression were the most common among seafarers.

The remaining 20% unfortunately were suicide related cases for seafarers. We also identified that 2016 was the worst year for suicide related cases. Over that 10 year period they accounted for 25% of all cases during that 10 year period, 2015 was 15%, a figure that we've actually announced before in the media.

And during 2014 that figure was 9%. So between 2015 and 2016 we've already seen a 10% increase. Now what's really worrying about this is, that those last 3 years accounts for a staggering 50% of all suicide related cases that the club has handled over that 10 year period.

However, when you look at the wider picture, outside of what we are doing at the Club, the Swansey University released a report and from that it was revealed that seafaring is actually the second highest at-risk profession in the world when it comes to suicides.

Read more on Mental health and why it is receiving a lot of media coverage, What are the issues that seafarers face today that could lead them to suffering from poor mental health, by clicking on the links.