If you read nothing else, read this…
- Health screening can help control the cost of private medical insurance.
- Second-opinion medical services can result in a change of treatment or diagnosis.
- Group income protection can support an employee’s return to work on a part-time basis or into a lower-paid position.
While a key part of this support is financial, plans can provide valuable additional support too. Paul Avis, marketing director at Canada Life Group Insurance, says: “The days of insurance [firms] just providing a financial benefit are long gone. Insurers now offer a range of additional benefits that can be used from diagnosis of a serious illness right through to [an employee’s] return to work.”
Understanding what is available, and how the different benefits interact, is essential when employers put together a support strategy for staff with serious illnesses.
Early identification
As catching many serious conditions early can make treatment and recovery more successful, health screening is a great tool in an employer’s strategy. All sorts of screens are available, from the full MOT-style assessments to those that focus on particular health concerns.
For example, Check4Cancer offers screenings for each of the big cancers including bowel, breast and skin cancer. Professor Gordon Wishart, medical director at Check4Cancer, explains: “Employers can pay for these checks or offer them through flexible benefits schemes or salary sacrifice [arrangements].
“Detecting cancer early often means an employee requires less treatment. This has benefits for the employer as fewer large claims can help to keep medical insurance premiums under control.”
While health screening may mean more serious conditions are identified, it will not necessarily push up the cost of group risk benefits. David Dolding, director of consulting at Portus, says: “We do tell the insurer if health screening is in place. Although this doesn’t affect the rate, because claims incidence is likely to fall over time, employers will enjoy lower premiums.”
Diagnosis and treatment
Other benefits can also be used to provide fast access to a diagnosis. Both medical insurance and health cash plans enable employees to see a consultant and get the necessary tests for a diagnosis.
Some of the additional services on group risk products can be useful at this point too. For instance, second-medical-opinion services are available on many plans including Best Doctors via Canada Life’s plans and Red Arc’s second-opinion service available through Aviva’s group critical illness insurance.
Figures from Best Doctors [Published when??] demonstrate the benefits. Analysis of the cases it handled on behalf of Canada Life show that a change of treatment was recommended in up to 59% of cases a year. On top of that, a complete change in diagnosis was recommended in as many as 17% of cases a year.
Employers can also provide assistance with the cost of treatment. Typically this is through PMI, but in some instances it may be possible to use the group income protection (GIP) scheme. “We’d consider paying for treatment if it will help facilitate a return to work, but we do find that the NHS is often the best place for serious conditions,” says Avis.
Emotional support is also available through many group risk products, with employee assistance programmes a common add-on. Some go further and include Red Arc, a care advisory service that provides practical and emotional support.
Return to work
Keeping in touch with employees during their absence can ensure they feel valued and make a return to work easier. But there is also help with this from GIP insurers.
As well as liaising between employers and employees, many offer a proportionate benefit. This tops up an employee’s income if they return to work on a part-time basis or to a less demanding and lower-paid role.
Being aware of all these services and how they interact can ensure that if an employee contracts a serious health condition the necessary financial and emotional support is in place.
Case study: Mills and Reeve offers extensive healthcare support to staff
With almost 900 employees across its six offices, Mills and Reeve is one of the 50 largest UK law firms. Keeping these employees fit and well is a key priority.
Samantha Neaves, reward and HR information systems manager, says: “Our employees are really important to us so we offer a comprehensive range of health benefits, either as core benefits or through the flexible benefits scheme. We want to be able to support staff whether they’re having a check-up at the dentist or dealing with a life-threatening illness.”
Among the benefits available through its flex scheme are private medical insurance, a health cash plan and dental insurance. It also offers a range of health screens from Bupa, Screenetics and Check4Cancer, giving employees access to everything from a screen for skin cancer through to a full assessment. “We recently changed our flex scheme enrolment, making it monthly for most of the benefits,” says Neaves. “This works really well for the health screens. If someone’s worried about their health, they can get it checked out quickly.”
As well as being able to pick the health benefits they want, upon completion of two years’ service, all employees are enrolled into the firm’s group income protection scheme. This is provided by Canada Life, which means that employees are also able to access added-value services including an employee assistance programme and second-opinion service Best Doctors.
While the benefits can help support employees’ health, the way the firm looks after employees if they are unable to work is also important. “If someone’s off work it can be daunting coming back so we stay in touch with them as much as possible,” says Neaves. “We’ll send them details of any announcements and, if appropriate, encourage them to come in. We want them to feel really supported.”
Viewpoint: Employers need to be flexible in their approach to serious illnesses
Providing support to employees with serious illnesses can be challenging for employers. Finding a balance between providing appropriate support while avoiding disruption to the business can be difficult to achieve. A healthcare strategy that can be implemented across the organisation but also tailored to individual circumstances is therefore crucial.
On a practical level, employees will need to take time off to attend medical appointments. They may also benefit greatly from flexible forms of working, such as working from home, reducing working time or arranging it more flexibly. Provision for this can be easily included in a healthcare strategy.
On a more personal level, employees may need scope to talk to managers about their illness. Line managers should, therefore, be adequately prepared to deal with these potentially difficult conversations. A healthcare policy can provide for line manager training and guidance. A strategy will also help managers to avoid being compromised in their decision-making if they are emotionally affected by an employee’s situation: having a policy to refer to can help demonstrate that decisions are being made on a business rather than a personal basis and not related to opinions about health status.
If an employee is absent for a long period due to serious illness, employers will need to ensure minimum disruption to the business while also supporting employees through this time. Ideally, the employer will keep in regular contact, to show the employee that they care about their welfare and to maintain a dialogue about a return to work. Again, procedures should be tailored to the individual – some employees may need more frequent contact with the organisation than others.
A healthcare strategy can cover all of these issues, setting out general principles but allowing space for adapting to individuals and their particular circumstances. In this way, employers will be best placed to provide employees with the support they need, while also enabling the organisation and the rest of the workforce to function efficiently.
Andrea Broughton is principal research fellow at the Institute for Employment Studies
