How to engage employees with mindful wellness

Incentivizing wellness: Carrots or sticks?
Are employers using the right incentives to truly change behaviour?

Moderator: Marc Mitchell, PhD candidate, University of Toronto and Cardiac Rehabilitation Supervisor, University Health Network

Take-aways: There needs to be a greater shift away from wellness events that happen once a year, such as in the spring/ summer, to a year- round culture of wellness. While many believe that rewards for participation are good incentives for employees, there are concerns about the potential for reward fatigue. Overall, delegates are looking for more evidence and examples of effective programs that inspire employees and incentivize other organizations that implement effective wellness programs.

Drug plan usage and productivity
Are employers doing enough now to keep their drug plans sustainable for future years?

Moderator: Kathy Sotirakos, senior market access manager, private insurance, Amgen Canada Inc.

Take-aways: Plan sponsors are constantly looking at management techniques and new health and wellness programs, and they’re starting to consider plan design changes. A number of tough decisions will need to be made in the coming years—especially given the aging workforce, which is expected to rely more heavily on benefits programs. There is an opportunity now for employers to challenge their suppliers to gather the data and evidence to better understand the value of their benefits plans in order to sustain drug plans for the future. Everyone has a role to play, including insurers, plan advisors and even manufacturers, which make medications and bring innovation to plan members.

Defining and measuring the value of health benefits
What metrics do employers use to measure the value of their health benefits?

Moderator: Mark Jackson, senior manager, market access, PIVINA Consulting

Take-aways: Absenteeism data isagoodwayto measure the value and effectiveness of health benefits. Employers can use absenteeism data as a way to detect potential health issues, intervene early and try to prevent disability claims. It’s also about doing the right thing for the employee. Ultimately, the goal would be to integrate more data with absenteeism to paint a more complete picture.

Plan approach and the role of providers
How are employers developing their health benefits strategy? Should providers play a larger role?

Moderator: Danny Peak, senior manager, national, private payer strategy, Sanofi Canada Inc.

Take-aways: HR departments need leadership buy-in before they can implement an effective wellness program. It’s important to have a champion in the organization that can work with leadership and try to align the health benefits strategy with the corporate strategy. Companies should try to get their providers to play a larger role and work with them on developing leadership buy-in so they can offer a relevant and sustainable wellness program. Everyone has a responsibility to engage in this conversation.

Smoking cessation support
Should smokers pay a financial penalty? Should non-smokers be rewarded?

Moderator: Carmen Hogan, vice-president, sales & service, Green Shield Canada

Take-aways: About two-thirds of those who discussed this topic believe there should be penalties for smokers. Those who disagreed did so because they felt you can’t penalize only smokers—what about people who have poor eating habits, for example? Almost everyone agreed that employees should be rewarded for not smoking. Rewards could include lower premiums or extra plan credits. The bottom line is, it’s important for employers to know which employees are smokers and offer tools to help them quit. Consider incentivizing providers such as pharmacies or dentists as part of the solution. Wellness and leadership buy-in

What level of leadership should own the decision-making on a wellness strategy?
What metrics are most important?

Moderator: Jack Shih, associate director, national policy planning, Merck Canada

Take-aways: Only some companies give their HR departments full autonomy over the implementation of wellness programs, while others require input from C-suite executives. ROI is a key measure of a plan’s effectiveness. While it’s sometimes difficult to demonstrate, the measurements are useful to help companies make any necessary adjustments in their wellness programs from year to year. Government tax credits, insurance premium discounts and recognition, such as industry awards, can also work as incentives for companies—and their peers—to implement wellness programs.

Linking wellness and engagement
How can managers and HR specialists better engage employees through wellness initiatives?

Moderator: Graham Lowe, president, The Graham Lowe Group

Take-aways: It’s important to break down the silos separating engagement strategies and wellness initiatives. Data from engagement surveys, HR and benefits utilization should be a collective resource to facilitate an integrated profile of organizational health. More robust employee management committees with expanded mandates can link engagement, wellness, and occupational health and safety goals. However, there is a significant barrier: middle managers and front-line supervisors lack the time, training and resources to connect wellness and engagement.

Mental health and responsibility
Are companies doing enough to support the mental well-being of their employees?

Moderator: Karen Seward, president, Cira Medical Services

Take-aways: There is social acceptance of mental health but not necessarily professional acceptance. Companies shouldn’t just manage mental health but should recognize it and support it. They need to acknowledge that people in the workplace may not have a behaviour issue but a resiliency issue, which can lead to a mental health issue. Regardless of the health issue, the organization’s responsibility is to provide the support; the employee’s responsibility is to engage with that support.

Want to see who else was there? Go to benefitscanada.com/photo-gallery

Bringing it all Together: Putting the Analytics in the Hands of Employers

Four expert panellists at the Healthy Outcomes Conference discussed how to measure the costs and return on investment (ROI) of wellness programs, as well as who is responsible for driving them.

❱ Dr. David Satok, corporate medical director, Rogers Communications Inc.
❱ Tanya Hogan, director, health solutions and pharmacy projects, Shoppers Drug Mart
❱ Chris Camp, chair, Halifax Professional Firefighters Benefits Trust
❱ Adam Marsella, national manager, private market solutions, GlaxoSmithKline

Q: Do employers currently have the right tools and resources to understand the costs and ROI of the various programs they offer?

Satok: “In order to get ROI, we need to look at the cost of wellness activities and programs versus savings to the company. This is still a difficult task to get to a hard number….Today, we are less concerned and now follow the holistic approach of employee value offering (EVO) over ROI. EVO is all about the culture of the organization.”

Q: Recognizing that change is a long- term process, what kinds of interim measures can employers use?

Hogan: “It depends on how complex the program is that you’re considering implementing and the size of your employee population. If it’s high cost, you should invest in data upfront. There are many existing programs available to employers with little cost—in which case, you don’t want to get caught up in trying to demonstrate ROI.”

Marsella: “When it comes to integrating data from multiple sources/ vendors, the two options are to outsource it—find a vendor or partners that will do it for you…or roll your sleeves up and do it yourself, which is a significant amount of work.”

Q: Do you think ROI is important? If so, how do you measure it?

Marsella: “You need to try to link it back to the values of the organization—I think that’s a much stronger driver [than ROI].”

Camp: “I don’t buy into ROI as the sole reason for implementing wellness programs. From our perspective, you should focus on the employees and the programs first and, eventually, you’ll get the ROI. Yes, it’s important to measure the programs, but we’re doing ourselves a disservice by focusing on the financial benefit right away. It’s going to come, but it will take time. As a union member, I realize we have to work together with employers. This isn’t about collective bargaining; it’s about trying to effect positive change in people. When you make that change, affect that life positively—and maybe even save that life—it’s worth more than any ROI.”

Q: Whose responsibility is it to drive change toward a broader, more strategic view of wellness?

Satok: “I think it’s everyone’s responsibility. The question is, who is going to step up? If your CEO steps up and says it’s a priority, you just got the golden ticket as a wellness provider. If not, the people responsible for wellness programs within a company need to step up, because it’s the right thing to do.”

Hogan: “There isn’t a single stakeholder who’s responsible; we all have a role to play. For employers, it’s about retention and attracting talent. Having these programs is beneficial to everyone in an organization, both employees and the employer.”