Home Kelsey Rolfe

Proactive, customized health and wellness strategies must consider pandemic impacts

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, employers will likely start to see more chronic diseases in their employee population and should consider proactive strategies for supporting workers’ overall health, said Peter Nord, chief medical officer at Medcan, during Benefits Canada’s 2023 Chronic Disease at Work conference in early February. “Employees are looking around for […]

  • February 27, 2023 February 15, 2023
  • 07:59

A look at the impact of shingles in the workplace

In 2021, Marcy came into Pavithra Ravinatarajan’s pharmacy with a handful of blisters on her face, which she thought was the result of a new moisturizer or detergent. Ravinatarajan could tell that wasn’t the case: it was clear the patient, whose name has been changed, had shingles. When Marcy went to see a doctor at […]

  • February 27, 2023 February 16, 2023
  • 07:57

2022 Healthy Outcomes Conference: Integrating DEI strategies into benefits programs

The majority of Capital One Canada’s workforce are second-generation Canadians and/or immigrants, so many employees didn’t see their families during the pandemic. While they wanted to take extended leaves from work, the financial company found few were actually taking advantage of its existing leave program. “It’s because it was unprotected,” said Rita Mizzi-Gago (right), the […]

  • December 16, 2022 December 12, 2022
  • 07:56

2022 Healthy Outcomes Conference: How is the pandemic changing plan sponsors’ communications strategies?

As the coronavirus pandemic prompted a meaningful change in how employers communicate with their workforces, Telus Communications Inc. reviewed job types and created personas around these employee groups, communicating well-being information differently depending on the persona. “We were doing that before, but it became even more important during the pandemic and . . . in […]

  • December 16, 2022 December 12, 2022
  • 07:53

2022 Healthy Outcomes Conference: Employers target timely, topical education in financial well-being strategies

Financial education and well-being initiatives are in the spotlight as employees face the stress of multiple financial headwinds — from inflation reaching a 40-year high to the strong likelihood of an impending recession — and search for advice and clarity. “There’s a very strong correlation between financial wellness and mental wellness,” said Dr. Jim Chung […]

  • December 16, 2022 December 12, 2022
  • 07:51

2022 Mental Health Summit: How health-care employers are supporting employees’ mental health post-pandemic

Working on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic day in and day out, health-care workers experienced significant mental-health challenges over the past two and a half years — and while the most acute phases of the pandemic may have passed, the sector is preparing for the psychological fallout. Employers in the sector have responded proactively […]

  • December 9, 2022 December 6, 2022
  • 07:59

2022 Mental Health Summit: The role of digital solutions in accessing mental-health supports

Canada has done a good job at reducing the stigma around discussing and seeking help for mental-health challenges, but two-thirds of Canadians who are struggling still don’t seek help. That’s a likely symptom of the country’s “fractured and fragmented” health-care system, said Joe Blomeley, executive vice-president and head of health services and enterprise growth at […]

  • December 9, 2022 December 6, 2022
  • 07:57

2022 Mental Health Summit: The importance of early intervention in improving plan members’ mental health

A pilot project between Sun Life Canada and CloudMD found employees who had access to a mental-health coach and targeted interventions at the early stage of a mental-health challenge saw significant reductions in their symptoms over time, as well as lower short-term disability durations for those who took leave. “Early detection initiatives can really enhance […]

  • December 9, 2022 December 6, 2022
  • 07:56

2022 DCIF: Using behavioural finance concepts to improve DC plan participation, contribution rates

Alongside the steady decline of defined benefit pension coverage in Canada, defined contribution plans have seen a massive growth — “a secular shift of responsibility onto the individual when it comes to retirement security in Canada,” according to Preet Banerjee, a personal finance expert, during Benefits Canada’s 2022 DC Investment Forum in late September. He called […]

  • October 17, 2022 October 14, 2022
  • 07:59

2022 DCIF: How DC plan sponsors can use REITs to meet investment objectives

While real estate has long been a part of defined benefit pension plans’ asset allocations, its inclusion in investment portfolios has steadily climbed in recent years. But defined contribution plan sponsors and members also stand to benefit from the asset class’ inflation-hedging properties, as well as its ability to boost income and improve portfolio diversification. Pension […]

  • October 17, 2022 November 4, 2022
  • 07:55