SE Health and GreenShield partner on innovative benefit to support Canadian caregivers

When SE Health, an impact-driven social enterprise, introduced a first-in-Canada benefit to plan members earlier this year, president and chief executive officer, John Yip didn’t expect to be among the first to use it.

The new benefit, developed in partnership with GreenShield, Canada’s only national non-profit health-care and insurance organization and SE Health’s benefits provider, provides working caregivers and their dependents comprehensive coverage and care.

This includes up to five visits from a certified personal support worker (PSW) and access to GreenShield+, a health-care and insurance platform that integrates health-care services — including telemedicine, pharmacy and mental-health services — with benefits plans to prevent caregiver burnout.

Today, one in three Canadians is a caregiver to a spouse, child, parent or grandparent, causing emotional strain and workplace challenges. At SE Health, Yip says more than half of his workforce are “double-duty caregivers,” meaning they spend their workdays caring for clients before going home to care for loved ones.

As two purpose-driven non-profits advancing health equity, it was a natural fit for GreenShield and SE Health to tackle one of his employees’ biggest well-being challenges together.

“As many as 44 per cent of caregivers miss an average of eight days of work annually, and 26 per cent are forced to take a leave of absence to meet those duties,” says Lucy Turowicz, GreenShield’s senior vice-president of product and data. “This benefit offering is a practical solution to the caregiver burnout crisis, supporting the overall health of many underserved Canadians.”

Yip realized the unique value of the benefit immediately. Shortly after it launched, his mother tripped and fell while checking her mail in the middle of winter. As her primary caregiver, Yip was out of the country when he got the call she’d been found unconscious by a neighbour.

He immediately activated the new benefit. It was a relief to have an experienced PSW on-site caring for his mother while he was abroad.


“Yes, the benefit is there for emergencies,” Yip says. “But it’s also there if someone simply needs a break. Just knowing your employer supports you makes it even more valuable.”

When it comes to supporting Canadian caregivers, SE Health and GreenShield are just getting started.

Recognizing that women disproportionately shoulder caregiving responsibilities, the two partners are piloting a new initiative called Respite for All. The program, in its early stages of development, will provide free PSW visits and access to cleaning services, as well as free virtual therapy to members of equity-seeking groups.

Later this year, SE Health and GreenShield also plan to make their caregiving benefit available to all employers, allowing even more workplaces to address caregiver burnout.

“Ultimately, what has made this collaboration successful is GreenShield’s strong focus on the social impact and mission of Better Health for All,” Yip explains. “It’s because of our shared values that we can co-create solutions that have the potential to be scaled to improve the well-being of even more Canadian employees.”