May 18th to 24th marks Mental Health Awareness, and perhaps now more than ever we need to take stock of our mental health and those around us and look to see how we can help one another.
At CMT, we take our duty of care to cadets very seriously, and it was with this in mind that in 2019 we became partners in the Wellness at Sea programme, championed by the Sailors Society.
The Wellness at sea programme looks to address the health of seafarers, focusing not only on their physical health, but also their mental and emotional wellbeing, and CMT were proud to be the first Cadet Training Organisation to provide access to all of its cadets.
The aim of the programme is to help cadets create a space where they can grow and start meaningful conversations on how to improve relationships their colleagues, friends and loved ones, and is a positive first step in building communities on board vessels.
CMT cadets are provided with their own unique login – presenting them with a range of resources on one site, and the ability to for personal, course and technical support – and they can access easily through free to download IOS and Android apps.
Speaking about the introduction and provision of this resource, CMT General Manager Katy Womersley stated: “We have seen in the last few years, many positive steps being introduced to remove the stigma around mental health and improve the well-being of seafarers, and we firmly believe that the addition of this programme will reinforce the progress being made and allow focus on those entering the industry from the first time, who often find the challenge of initially being at sea the most difficult.
“This is a cost we are happy to bear as an organisation as we recognise that poor mental health effects a large number of people, and despite the many strides being made to recognise and deal with these issues, it is not something that is easy to talk about for everyone.
“Although it is a enormously rewarding and enlightening career, like all jobs it comes with its pressures, and we believe the provision of this programme will greatly help these seafarers, as they continue to enable the lifeblood of world trade, accounting for 90% of world goods.”