The government has announced it wants healthcare to move to a much more preventative model but, as this article explores, it has been scant on the practical detail of how to do this.
So, this article will cover some practical actions employers can take to drive this agenda forward, which will lead to a more sustainable, productive workforce.
As Tina Woods, Chief Executive, Business for Health, says, the “connection between business and health is starting to be recognised” but businesses, public sector and government, need to “think much more creatively”.
Get your voice heard
As Woods says in this article, now is a good time for businesses to make their opinions on this issue clear, given the renewed investment in the NHS announced in the budget is largely being funded by an increase to employer National Insurance.
One issue that the government needs to address on behalf of businesses, for example, is changing the mindset of NHS workers to be more open to partnership with the corporate sector, and more organised about how they do this. (Jaguar Land Rover Chief Medical Officer Steve IIey talks about this in this feature).
Woods says that the best way to forward is not about private sector “taking over” the NHS, but about “everyone doing their bit to be part of the solution in driving longterm system change towards prevention”.
“Businesses want to be part of the solution to address the twin healthcare and productivity crises facing the UK,” she says. “By putting in place support to keep employees healthy and in work, we can improve outcomes, reduce waiting lists, and grow the economy. But businesses cannot do this alone – they want to do more, and need support from the government to do this.”
Tap into the trust the people have in business over government
Employers sometimes worry that getting involved in an employee’s health and wellbeing issues is too personal and, potentially, too paternalistic.
However, research from the Edelman Trust Barometer actually shows that people have more trust in the their employer than the government in general, but also in particular when considering health messages; over half (55%) of people said they believed their employer for health advice ahead of the government (50%), in Edelman’s 2022 survey.
The 2024 report concludes: “As the most trusted institution, business should leverage its comparative advantage to inform debate and deliver solutions” and “business and government can build consensus and collaborate to deliver results that push us towards a more just, secure, and thriving society”.
While Health Secretary Wes Streeting acknowledged the fears of being labelled a “nanny state” he said that this had led to “nothing being done and the problem has only got worse”.
Provide personalised, human support
One way that businesses can build on this trust is by providing personalised health solutions to employees rather than off the shelf ones, which risk feeling irrelevant. With line managers getting more experienced in dealing with the wellbeing of their teams, employers have an additional advantage of being able to add the human touch when promoting health messages.
“It’s that kind of human touch element, along with the digital package, that is often missing. The tailored bespoke support is crucial,” says Woods.
Use your data nous
Businesses now have sophisticated ways to deal with huge amounts of data, and can supplement the NHS’s health data with their own.
Employers are able to dig deep into the data to understand what is driving absenteeism and presenteeism in order to deal with the root cause of illness. Similarly, on the flipside, data mining can explore what is at the root of good health and high productivity in order to create more effective solutions.
“It’s so important to address the root cause,” says Woods. “If a person has knee pain there’s no point just sending them off to the physio without looking at why they have this pain in the first place. That’s just wasted money.”
Help the government tackle obesity
Streeting has identified obesity as one of his main health priorities because of its detrimental effect on economic productivity, saying “widening waistbands” are a “burden” on the NHS.
According to the NHS’s own survey data for England in 2022, 29% of adults were obese and 64% were overweight. Obesity and type 2 diabetes are interlinked and this costs the NHS £10bn a year, 9% of its budget.
One of the government’s strategies is to make weight loss medication available on the NHS in a bid to reduce worklessness. But as obesity specialists have pointed out, the number of people eligible for the medication is likely to far outstrip the budget.
Employers, however, are starting to work with the companies who supply this drug, like eMed Healthcare UK.
“We are gaining more and more traction from corporates who come to us and say they are interested in offering it as a new employee benefit in order to support employees to better manage their weight,” says James Entwistle, Enterprise Sales & Business Development Director.
Where an employer can really add value alongside the medication to ensure the best chance of success is in supporting the employee with the behaviour change programme which includes exercise and nutrition.
“We give employees access to unlimited consultations to our clinicians so if they want support at any moment, they can get it,” he says. This is different from receiving the medication via the NHS which would only be able to provide limited support.
Could you open up your spaces to support the NHS?
As this article mentions, employers like Jaguar Land Rover are already opening up their spaces for NHS clinicians to come into and carry out checks and screening.
High street brands like Starbucks are also supporting ‘community resilience’ and ‘neighbourhood health’ by encouraging local residents to come to its cafes to check in and have conversations with others about their health.
Others like Holland & Barrett are training their employees to be able to supply informed medical information to the general public.
Could you do more to support early mental health intervention of your employees?
Mental health is a big focus for the government, with MAD World Keynote speaker Luciana Berger, currently undertaking a review for the Prime Minister Kier Starmer. However, the pressure that the NHS is under regarding Mental Health and the huge waiting lists have been well documented.
This is an area that employers could really make a difference to their employees’ lives. One of the current challenges is that mental health issues are often not addressed early enough, resulting in pressure on the NHS as people are accessing services at crisis point when recovery is much longer and more difficult.
Employers could help significantly with good early intervention services in place. While many employers have EAPs, engagement figures remain low and as this article explores there’s evidence that the services aren’t being accessed early enough. This suggests employers could focus more on increasing health literacy and signposting which services to use at what times, encouraging early access.
“Mental Health is an area where if there could be better interaction between the NHS and the private sector you might find that the pathways that people go through in terms of their mental health journey could be vastly improved and captured before it becomes a major problem,” says Woods.
Do you have employees going into people’s homes who could support the NHS?
Another innovative way an employer is working with the NHS is Cadent Gas as part of a charity project called ‘Keeping Well and Warm’.
In recognition that fuel poverty rates are continuing to rise in the West Midlands to amongst the highest in the UK with almost 20% of the population affected, Cadent announced a partnership with Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (BCHC) Charity in September. It’s being delivered by the Direct Access to Wellbeing (DAWs) team at the trust’s charity and the safeguarding team at Cadent.
Given its employees are entering people’s homes who are struggling with their heating, they are in a unique position to identify at-risk people in the community. The support they can offer varies, including ensuring the most vulnerable in local communities get access to wider support available. Representatives have also been trained in offering advice and guidance on practical ways to support people to be ‘well and warm’ at home.
“This is about understanding that being warm and being well are related,” says Ellie Orton, Chief Executive of NHS Charities Together, who says the service is particularly helpful for those newly discharged from hospital. Health workers checking in on them are now able to alert Cadent quickly if their boiler isn’t working, or they haven’t got any hot water, or their fridge isn’t working. Engineers are then immediately sent out.
“This is also about understanding the environment in which somebody lives and their health and wellbeing,” says Orton. “So many people coming out of hospital are going back into homes that aren’t suitable – there’s damp, there’s cold – so they’re going straight back into hospital with a worsened condition. So Cadent is a brilliant example of supporting the NHS in preventative healthcare.”
