During May 2022 IP Inclusive undertook this joint project with Jonathan’s Voice. Previous surveys were conducted in 2018 and 2019. The survey was open to all members of CIPA (Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys and CITMA, (Chartered Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys) as well as to business support professionals.
The blog below first appeared on the IP Inclusive website. Jonathan’s Voice is very grateful to Andrea Brewster LEO, IP Inclusive and to her colleagues for the work entailed in creating this detailed report about mental health in the profession which will underpin the work of Jonathan’s Voice.
“Levels of stress, anxiety and depression were significant, with more than half of all respondents saying they had been adversely affected by stress in the preceding twelve months. At least 45% of respondents to all three surveys had been affected by anxiety, and at least a fifth by depression. The most significant causes, again as in 2018 and 2019, were said to be related to high workloads. For the student respondents, exams were key contributors as well. Inclusivity-related problems are also still prevalent.
In terms of business impact, the survey revealed that stress and other mental health issues are leading to mistakes (or near-mistakes), reduced confidence, difficulty concentrating and reduced productivity, as well as physical problems such as fatigue and loss of sleep. In many cases they have caused respondents to consider leaving their current jobs and/or the profession.”
The full blog can be found https://ipinclusive.org.uk/newsandfeatures/the-results-of-our-2022-mental-wellbeing-survey/.
