Paul Schreier, CEO, Simplyhealth

Around  2.8 million people in the UK are out of work due to sickness, and nearly 1 in 5 working-age people are economically inactive. Even among those in employment, sickness leave remains high with the average employee taking nearly two weeks of absence a year. This growing inactivity is placing increased pressure on productivity and continues to pose a challenge for the national economy. 

The recent Keep Britain Working Review published in November calls for shared responsibility for workplace health between employers, employees, government and the NHS – with employers encouraged to support preventative healthcare in the workplace to keep employees in work and boost the nation’s productivity. 

Encouragingly, many employers want to support their worker’s wellbeing with 70% of businesses saying the NHS crisis has caused them to feel a greater responsibility to look after their employees’ health.  

While preventative healthcare is increasingly becoming a priority for businesses, this tends to be largely focused on physical, and increasingly mental health support above all else. However, oral healthcare is a very much overlooked area of workplace benefits, despite the often underestimated toll it takes on productivity.

At first glance poor oral health may not seem like a major contributor to workplace absence, yet 26% of workers said that dental pain affected their work, while 18% agreed that it had impacted their productivity. This is in part driven by the lack of prevention with a quarter (25%) of British adults not visiting the dentist for a check-up at least once every two years, as recommended by professionals. 

Without payment solutions to better manage the cost, trips to the dentist can be expensive and of those that do not go regularly, 38% say it is because they can’t afford to go. When minor issues go untreated, they can quickly escalate into more serious conditions that may lead to time taken off work.

The immediate impact of poor oral health is days lost in sickness absence, but the longer-term impacts can lead to wider health issues that will become a long term drag on productivity.

Poor oral health has also been linked to some serious long-term health conditions including heart and blood vessel problems, cardiovascular disease, and respiratory illnesses. For example, bacteria from gum infections can enter the bloodstream, causing inflammation and increasing the risk of heart attack or stroke and potentially spreading to the lungs. For someone living with diabetes, it can negatively affect blood sugar control too.  

If employers and the government want to make a marked impact on productivity, then preventative healthcare, including oral health, must form part of the solution.  Workplace health benefits can play an important role in this with 52% of employees saying that if their employer offered a form of health cover, they wouldn’t need to take as much time off sick.

Workplaces must take care not to overlook the valuable contribution that dental benefits can make when it comes to employee wellbeing. Employee benefit plans that include oral health cover encourage employees to go for regular check-ups and access early intervention to help to promote a healthy and productive workforce. 

In fact, introducing dental benefits is proven to directly impact people going to the dentist on a regular basis with 87% of patients with a health plan visit the dentist at least once every two years, compared to just 69% for those with no health cover.

Many employers are having to work with squeezed resources right now. With budgets tight, mental health and physical health benefits are often given priority over oral health benefits, but it shouldn’t have to be an either/or choice for companies – and overlooking oral health could become a false economy.

By having access to affordable and simple benefits which prioritise preventative care, employers can tackle the growing issue of poor oral health. In doing so, they can help promote a culture of preventative healthcare that treats issues before they arise, encouraging a healthier and more productive workforce.

     Find out more about Simplyhealth and Simply Dental 

 

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