Isolated and far from home, vulnerable sailors face mental health issues
Shipping companies are neglecting the mental health of seafarers who work in a highrisk occupation that has a rising suicide rate, experts said yesterday.
Campaigners said spending months at sea, cut off from loved ones could have a worrying effect on sailors’ stability.
The UK Protection and Indemnity Club, an insurer for shipowners, said suicide rates among seafarers suffering from poor mental health had more than tripled since 2014.
Addressing a welfare conference in Dubai, Eugene Mayne, chief executive of regional transport company Tristar Group, said one sailor in four struggled with depression.
“Nearly half of these seafarers said they had not asked anybody for help,” he said. “Industry leaders need to collectively pay attention to this growing trend and come together to do something about it.”
Shipping managers pointed the finger at the increasing availability of on-board Wi-Fi, linking it with a rise in depression and suicide.
Although the internet connects sailors with their loved ones thousands of kilometres away, campaigners believe it can also increase feelings of isolation and desperation when things go wrong.
Experts said a life far removed from social media and the internet was the best method to encourage wellness on board.
“We have identified two issues that [affect] the welfare of sailors – the use of social media and the management of finances,” said Rev Andy Bowerman, regional director for Mission to Seafarers, a global charity operating in 200 ports around the world to support workers at sea.
This year, the charity helped repatriate more than 60 sailors abandoned by employers who went bankrupt.
Rev Bowerman said he was looking into the case of at least 65 others in need of help, trapped on vessels off the UAE.
“We have intervened in cases where seafarers have attempted to harm themselves at sea after seeing a social media post from a loved one on Facebook or WhatsApp that they have misinterpreted,” he said.
Although careers in the maritime industry are described as high-risk occupations, exact figures on suicide are difficult to gather.
Data from Liberian-flagged vessels last year showed suicide claimed five of 43 lives lost on board ships.
Factors cited in a study of UK merchant shipping between 1919 and 2015 found several factors associated with suicide.
Mental health conditions (25 per cent), depression (18 per cent) and relationship problems (13 per cent) were the most common.
Of reported cases, 17 per cent were drinking heavily before the suicide. “Mental health awareness is increasing but sailors do not always know how to access help,” said Dr Deepti Mankad, regional director for the Sailors’ Society, whose work specialises in wellness programmes in Mumbai.
“I recently spoke with a seafarer who was on anti-anxiety medication but had not declared it to his master on board.
“Sailors are concerned about not being employed if they declare they have had treatment for an issue. This encourages seafarers to keep quiet about anxiety or depression.
“Companies have a responsibility to ease these concerns to encourage people to talk about their mental health.”
A recent study of more than 1,000 seafarers by the Sailors’ Society and Yale University found that 26 per cent showed signs of depression, but few were willing to seek help.
Dr Mankad said the aviation industry was a good example of how the welfare of staff under pressure was a high priority, but admitted this was rarely enforced in shipping.
“Families and loved ones do not always understand the risk these sailors are taking with their mental health and post things to social media that can be very small, but easily misunderstood,” Dr Mankad said.
“Last year, I was aware of four young cadets who jumped overboard because they could not handle the break-up of a relationship.”
The International Seafarers’ Wellness and Assistance Network runs a helpline called SeafarerHelp, providing emotional support to seafarers worldwide.