Female employees make health a higher priority

The 2014 Consumer Health Mindset survey shows marked differences in the perspectives, behaviours and attitudes that male and female employees display towards their health and well-being.

The survey finds that 65% of female employees feel they have control over their health compared with 50% of males.

Female employees are also more likely to recognize key activities as important to their health and wellness. For example, 73% of females feel managing their emotional health and their stress levels are important to their overall health, compared with 54% and 57% of males, respectively. In addition, 67% of females believe getting routine medical screenings is an important factor in maintaining their health, compared with only 52% of males.

“While women are generally more actively engaged in their healthcare and understand what they need to do to get and stay healthy, employers need to ensure both men and women are making good health a priority,” said Joann Hall Swenson, health engagement leader at Aon Hewitt.

Obstacles
While female employees are more aware of the activities that are important to their health and wellness, the survey shows they are also more likely than their male counterparts to feel there are barriers to getting and staying healthy.

Stress – Fifty-eight percent of female employees say they experience high stress, compared with 44% of males. In addition, 39% of females are more likely to say their stress has increased over the past 12 months, compared with only 26% of male employees.

“Since the economic downturn, more women have become the sole or primary income provider for their families, and this, in addition to things like work/life balance, may contribute to the additional pressures and stress women feel,” says Christine Baskin, senior-vice president of consulting at The Futures Company.

Recent industry research shows that highly stressed people are 30% less likely to eat healthily, 25% less likely to exercise and 200% more likely to fail to achieve their goals in weight-loss programs. These employees also get half as much sleep as people reporting low levels of stress.

Affordability – Female employees are more likely to cite affordability as an obstacle in achieving good health (44%) compared with males (37%). For example, female employees who are enrolled in a consumer-driven health plan are more likely to say they sacrifice care (29% versus 18%), seek lower-cost options (27% versus 17%) or postpone care (27% versus 13%).

“Many of the health services women use are costly, which may explain why affordability is of greater concern for women,” said Ray Baumruk, employee research leader at Aon Hewitt. “Women may also be postponing or sacrificing their care in favour of providing care for their children or spouses because they tend to be the ones making and driving healthcare decisions for their families.”

Employer Support – According to the survey, female employees are also less likely to feel they get appropriate support from their employer. Only 35% of females say their employer is extremely/very supportive in helping them get and stay healthy, compared with 45% of males.

Female employees are also more likely to want tools and solutions from their employer to help them better manage their health:

• 60% of females would like their employer to offer free health tools and programs (versus 52% of males);
• 56% of females would like to be rewarded for health achievements (versus 50% of males); and
• 48% of females would like a personalized online view of how they use healthcare and other health information (versus 43% of males).

The survey analyzed responses from more than 2,700 employees and their dependents covered by employer-sponsored health plans.

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• Who is responsible for employee health?
• Employees go to work in sickness and in health