The holidays can be very stressful for many, 64% of respondents to a NAMI survey said their mental health worsened around the holidays. The holidays can be a lonely and anxious time for many. Also, as inflation worsens and the cost of living increases the stress of gift-giving, groceries, travel expenses etc. can heighten this already stressful time. Moreover, we have all seen and heard of the increase in depression, anxiety, and the overall decline of mental health in our world. According to an ongoing study that began in April 2020, 24% of Americans aged 18+ reported having at least one symptom of depression in the previous two years. They say covid alone triggered a 25% increase in prevalence of anxiety and depression worldwide.
With all these overwhelming statistics employers have an obligation to provide a solution to their employees but it usually comes at a high cost. Below are low-cost holiday tips to cope with stress.
- Eat a balanced diet
- Stick to a routine
- Add physical activity to your day
- Get a good night’s sleep
- Practice mindfulness and mediation
- Stay connected
On top of all this, as an employer you can provide your employees with free virtual mental health visits. There are many platforms to review when making this decision, below is a list of things to consider when doing so.
- Utilization
- Utilization is key to a successful virtual health care platform. The more utilization, the less medical claims, the more effective the program is in lowering your medical expenses.
- Employee Engagement
- How you increase utilization is a great question to ask the virtual care platforms. Creating campaigns, marketing, and tutorials is key to employee engagement. Higher employee engagement means healthier and more productive employees.
- Omitting Performance Guarantees
- Making sure the virtual health care platform puts their money where their mouth is provides a guaranteed success. Make sure the utilization and guarantees are in writing before committing.
- Reporting Capabilities
- Like anything now, modern reporting and tracking is important to see the success and utilization of this product.
- Employee Experience
- Wait times, customer service, and digital experience are all things to keep in mind. Its not a normal appointment where you show up to the office. You want to make sure your entire demographics have the capabilities of navigating the platform.
- Limited Usage
- Yes, different from the first. The biggest thing is making sure that employees have unlimited access to the virtual health care platform at the same reasonable expense. If the contract provides limited appointments a month, make sure that the employees can see the doctor outside of the virtual network.
Posted by John Hansbrough in Uncategorized