Retired U.S. Army Major Gen. Gregg F. Martin, construction unit commander during the Iraq War, in Bipolar General: My Forever War with Mental Illness, reaches out to military, construction and business leaders and others to better understand the destructive nature of bipolar disorders, warning flags and how to get help.

New York State Bridge Authority and Office of Mental Health representatives gathered state lawmakers, local emergency response teams and community leaders for a suicide prevention summit last month to raise awareness, discuss better collaboration and review suicide prevention and emergency mental health response practices around the state’s vehicular and pedestrian bridges, parks and other public spaces.

Almost 30 years ago when I started my career in the construction industry, mental health was rarely talked about.

The actions, which took place during National Recovery Month, seek to propel the unionized construction industry to fight substance use disorder and help find ways for workers to improve their mental health.

Camouflaging the ever-present security features was a constant at the 16-hectare mental health campus, built on time and below budget primarily to treat an incarcerated population but also to serve the community.

Boosting peer-to-peer support is critical in reducing the construction industry’s high suicide rate, said mental health advocates at the Construction Working Minds Summit, held May 17-18 in Denver.

In 2004, as a 16-year veteran in the mental health field, clinical psychologist Sally Spencer-Thomas thought she knew a lot about how the mind works.

While the construction industry continues to contend with the opioid crisis, Dave Argus found that offering a helping hand to recovering addicts is not only an act of compassion, it’s good business.

Firms should put in place a comprehensive plan to help workers through high-stress periods in their lives.

U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh joined local union leaders to announce the new effort that also links existing local union programs.