An increase is required in better-quality evidence – utilizing validated and culturally suitable measures of mental health outcomes, psychosocial risks, and work-related outcomes – which assesses organizational interventions that mitigate the known risk factors to workers’ mental health. This includes clear specification of the risk factors addressed by the intervention, and designs which allow for establishing which components of the intervention have had an impact on the outcomes.

Cluster-randomized designs, which include process evaluations, can be used to assess the effectiveness of complex interventions in work settings, and the feasibility and acceptability to stakeholders.

The common components for effective implementation of organizational interventions need to be identified to allow for better synthesis and comparison of research.

There is a need for an increase in better-quality investigation of emerging risk factors for the future of work and how these can be mitigated. The evidence base should also be strengthened, taking account of ongoing changes to the working environment for policy-making and implementation.

An increase is needed in better-quality studies which assess organizational interventions that mitigate the known risk factors for the mental health of health, emergency and humanitarian workers. Studies should utilize validated and culturally suitable measures of mental health outcomes, including disaggregation by sociodemographic status, occupation and setting.

More research is required on comparative effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of organizational interventions compared to other intervention levels for health, emergency and humanitarian workers.

An increase is needed in better-quality studies which investigate the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and implementation of organizational interventions (such as reasonable accommodations) delivered to workers with symptoms of emotional distress or meeting criteria for mental health conditions, in order to improve positive mental health and reduce symptoms of mental health conditions, suicidal behaviours and substance use. While there is a relatively better body of work in the field of return-to-work interventions, there remains a gap in evidence for workplace accommodations for workers with mental health conditions – i.e. those who are in work either following a return to work or never having taken absence due to a mental health condition.

Increased evidence on the factors for feasible, non-stigmatizing implementation of accommodations for workers with mental health conditions.

Research on manager training for mental health should include measurement of supervisees’ work-related outcomes such as absenteeism, presenteeism, productivity and performance.

Increase evidence of the effectiveness of manager training for mental health on priority outcomes (e.g. workers’ suicidal behaviours and substance use, managers’ leadership style).

Include a longer duration of follow-up (greater than 6 months) for key outcomes such as supervisees’ mental health.

An increase in studies that identify effective components of manager training for mental health, including delivery components (e.g. duration) and content components.

An increase in better-quality studies and/or trials of leadership-oriented manager training and its impact on health outcomes.

An increase in better-quality studies on interventions that address help-seeking outcomes effectively (e.g. by mitigating stigma in the workplace).

More studies to investigate the effectiveness and feasibility of manager training for mental health in health, emergency and humanitarian work settings.

An increase in better-quality evidence for mental health literacy and awareness training and its effects on provision of help to colleagues in distress and on increasing help-seeking behaviours (including for the prevention of suicide).

An increase in studies which identify effective components of workers’ training for mental health, including delivery components (e.g. duration) and content components.

An increase in higher-quality and sufficiently powered research to determine the effectiveness of training health, humanitarian and emergency personnel in knowledge, attitudes and skills for mental health.

An increase in evidence which identifies medium- to long-term follow-up duration effects to inform decisions as to how frequently training should be delivered.

An increase in better-quality studies which ascertain the incidence of workers meeting the criteria for mental health diagnosis through use of diagnostic assessments at baseline and follow-up to determine the extent of prevention of mental ill-health.

An increase in better-quality studies which assess the comparative efficacy and cost-effectiveness of specific individual interventions, which include medium- to long-term follow-up to assess sustainability of effects.

An increase in better-quality studies which include validated work-related outcomes when assessing the effects of individual interventions, including longer-term durations of follow-up.

An increase in studies which identify effective components of (work-focused) psychosocial interventions for mental health and work-related outcomes, such as delivery components (e.g. duration) and content components (e.g. mode of psychosocial intervention).

An increase in studies of individual interventions which include suicidal behaviours and substance use outcomes.

Increased use of cluster randomized controlled designs in this field.

An increase in effectiveness and implementation research which delineates additive or comparative effects of multimodal programmes (e.g. combining individual and organizational interventions) compared to single-intervention types (e.g. individual interventions alone).