Need to know:
- Greater awareness of mental health problems associated with Covid-19 (Coronavirus) will make employers and employees more comfortable to discuss this area of health.
- The pandemic could drive health and wellbeing benefit redesign, with greaterfocus on prevention, digital services and personalisation.
- Organisations are seeking more frequent feedback from employees to better understand any arising health issues and demonstrate they care.
From key workers who remained on the front-line to office staff with makeshift desks in the spare room, the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic has affected everyone. And, while it forced organisations to take a different approach to employee health and wellbeing, there are a number of lessons that will shape their strategies for years to come.
Importantly, the pandemic has ensured that employee health and wellbeing is now firmly on the agenda. Charles Alberts, head of health management at Aon, says: “It’s become a c-suite priority. Employers are recognising that they have a responsibility when it comes to employee health. We’ve seen an increase in organisations looking to take on chief medical officers or directors of wellbeing, or to outsource this role to occupational health experts.”
As well as taking employee health more seriously, the pandemic has also influenced the type of support organisations need to offer their workforces. While some employers have had to make real adjustments to safety to enable their businesses to stay open, others have had to adapt to support employees working from home, says Brett Hill, distribution director at Towergate Health and Protection.
“Once there’s a vaccine, employers may be able to remove measures such as social distancing and one-way systems in the workplace but remote working is here to stay,”he explains. “Employees like the flexibility it brings but employers also need to be aware that it has its own health risks including more musculoskeletal and mental health problems.”
Mental health priorities
Whether employees are in the workplace or at home, the virus has also resulted in a significant increase in mental health problems. Eugene Farrell, mental health lead at Axa PPP Healthcare, says: “Many people are anxious about the virus. Some will be experiencing grief and, especially among those working from home, there can be problems relating to isolation and burnout.”
Given this increase, Kevin Thomson, corporate healthcare director at Nuffield Health, believes the oft-quoted statistic that one in four people will experience a mental health condition in any year is set to shift to one in two. “Employers will need to have a strong culture of help and support to ensure that employees feel valued and able to ask for help,” he adds.
While supporting these employees may pose a challenge to employers, many see the increased awareness of mental health problems as a positive for longer-term strategies. “It’s amplified the mental health conversation,” explains Farrell. “It will make employers and employees more comfortable about talking about mental health. That is hugely positive.”
Virtual reality
Another major shift driven by the pandemic is the rise of virtual services. With social distancing making face-to-face interactions undesirable, and in some cases impossible, digital and phone-based health and wellbeing services became the norm.
“[Employee assistance programmes] EAPs went remote overnight and demand for virtual GP services increased significantly,” explains Farrell. “We also set up a clinical support centre to offer digital triage to medical insurance customers.”
This demand for virtual services is expected to continue long after the pandemic. “The convenience means it’s popular with employees,” he says. “Face-to-face will return but most services can be delivered remotely.”
As well as looking after employees with health issues, the pandemic has also put more focus on prevention. From the 20-second hand wash to losing weight and getting fitter to reduce health risks, people are taking their immune systems much more seriously now, says Alberts. “It used to be standard practice to go into work with a cold,” he says. “The virus will change this and make people think about boosting their immunity through healthy lifestyles.”
Finding ways to support employees wanting to make changes will be key and employers are in a good position to do this, says Thomson. “Employees will be looking for trusted sources of health information,” he says.
“This can be delivered through workplace health education programmes, giving employees access to a wide variety of health resources such as webinars, on-demand fitness classes and support.”
Greater diversity
The pandemic has also taught employers that health and wellbeing strategies need to be tailored. “Covid-19 has highlighted the fact that employers can’t treat everyone the same,” explains Alberts. “Different groups, whether by race, age, health status or gender, have been affected differently by the virus. This recognition will lead to much more personalised approaches to health and wellbeing, allowing employees to pick a package of support and benefits that suits their needs.”
As well as providing employees with more personalisation, health-related benefits could see an overhaul, according to James Spencer, director, health and benefits at Willis Towers Watson. “We surveyed the group life insurers back in June to find out how the virus had affected claims and, at that point, they had already received 300 more claims in 2020 than they had expected. This will lead to increases in premiums for group risk products over the next few years, forcing employers to look at benefit design.”
He adds that while employers will continue to offer group risk, especially as the virus has made protection so important, the level of cover may reduce. Instead, employers may look to products such as health cash plans, medical insurance, and wellbeing and mental health support to help employees address health issues.
The fast pace at which the pandemic unfolded pandemicalso meant that many organisations shifted to a much more real-time approach to checking in with employees. This is a trend that will remain, with more and more employers introducing initiatives such as weekly engagement surveys and employee resource groups, says Spencer. “Employers must listen to their staff,” he adds. “By proactively engaging with employees, they feel more valued and the organisation is better able to respond quickly to what’s going on in the workplace.”
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