Editor's Note: Take a look at our featured best practice, ISO 45001:2018 (OH&S) Awareness Training (73-slide PowerPoint presentation). ISO 45001:2018 is the world's first internationally recognized standard for Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S). This replaces the old OHSAS 18001:2007, providing a comprehensive framework for organizations to manage OH&S risks, and improve performance through effective policies and [read more]
How Effective Health Management Strategies Save Businesses Money in the Long Run
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Healthcare costs can take up a huge chunk of your company’s revenue. Besides the direct costs, sick employees will be less productive or have to take leaves to address their health condition, which means less human resources and ultimately diminished profits.
So, as a business owner, having an effective healthcare strategy can help you save a lot of money in the long run.
This guide looks into how such strategies succeed and save money. It can be a good read if you are working towards managing healthcare costs for your business.
What Is a Health Management Strategy?
The best definition of a healthcare management strategy for a business is an organized employer-sponsored program to support employees in adopting behavior that benefits their physical and mental well-being.
The strategy can sometimes extend to cover the employees’ immediate families. Having employees adopt behavior that promotes physical and mental health benefits the employees and helps businesses save large amounts of money. Below is a breakdown of the different ways this is possible.
Reduced Healthcare Costs
Employees who are engaged in health behavior will fall sick less often. For example, if your strategy can help lower the number of smokers in your organization, you can significantly reduce the incidences of respiratory illnesses, cancer, heart diseases, stroke, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
These diseases do not strike the first day a person smokes a cigarette but progress with time. So, you can prevent these ailments by adopting a strategy that helps your employees quit.
The same goes for exercises and supplements aimed at promoting health. You can enjoy tax-free HSA/FSA dollars for health and wellness products sourced from reputable suppliers like TrueMed, but you must show a Letter of Medical Necessity.
Decreased Absenteeism and Turnover
Having an employee miss work for a day or two may not seem like much. But the losses can be enormous when it’s a couple of employees, or you look at total missed hours in a year. According to statistics, companies with wellness programs have 11 percent reduced absenteeism and 29 percent less sick leave usage than companies without one.
Wellness programs are known to reduce turnover rates for employees. A wellness program communicates appreciation and the value an employer places on employees, making them less likely to leave the company. With employees staying longer, companies can save thousands of dollars they would otherwise use to recruit and onboard new hires.
Increased Productivity
Health and productivity go together. It also has an impact on the quality of work they perform. Effective health management strategies help employees stay healthy and feel the best, translating to increased productivity.
The opposite is also true. Increased productivity means you get more out of every employee, which means you may not need to increase your human resources for a while, which translates to huge savings.
Implementing a Health Management Program
Creating a program that works for your business requires several considerations, such as defining the goals of your program. When defining your goals, consider what you want to realize from the programs and how you will track and measure success.
Secondly, get input from your employees. A successful program must have the backing of your team since they will be the participants. You also need to consider your unique circumstances so that your program fits everyone. Sometimes, you must tailor the program to different ages and physical needs.
Once a program is running, evaluate its effectiveness and adjust where needed. The initial days will not be without challenges, but you should get the hang of it with time and reap the benefits highlighted in this guide.
In Conclusion…
Implementing a robust health management strategy is an investment with measurable returns. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so they say, and in business terms, this translates to substantial financial savings through reduced healthcare costs, decreased absenteeism, and lower turnover rates.
So take that decisive step: create a tailored program that suits your company’s unique makeup and empowers your employees to be the best versions of themselves, both for their personal benefit and the collective fiscal health of your organization.
This strategy isn’t just about spending less – it’s about valuing more. Remember, the path to prosperity often lies in the well-being of those who work for it.
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About Shane Avron
Shane Avron is a freelance writer, specializing in business, general management, enterprise software, and digital technologies. In addition to Flevy, Shane's articles have appeared in Huffington Post, Forbes Magazine, among other business journals.Top 10 Recommended Documents on HSE
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