Employers can implement a number of strategies to raise awareness and promote access to cardiovascular care to support women’s health.
Cardiovascular disease is a key health concern for women, and a new guide seeks to arm employers with the tools and information needed to help workers manage these needs.
The Northeast Business Group on Health noted that cardiovascular disease is both the leading cause of pregnancy-related death and the leading cause of death for women overall. Studies found that heart disease caused a fifth of deaths for women in 2021; however, about half of American women are aware of this risk, NEBGH said.
The first half of the guidebook is dedicated to laying out stats like these and making it clear to employers why cardiovascular care should be a priority. Candice Sherman, CEO of the organization, told Fierce Healthcare that one of the central goals in creating the guide was to ensure employers are aware of how critical cardiovascular care is, so they can pass that knowledge on to their workers.
A new guide from Northeast Business Group on Health helps employers understand the challenges women face when it comes to cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity. It also recommends actions that employers can take to support women in their workforce.
EMPLOYER GUIDE: The Northeast Business Group on Health, based in the Financial District, has released a guide for employers about cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity in women. The document is designed to help human resources and benefits leaders develop strategies to promote women’s health and improve outcomes. Access the guide here.
Employer-provided caregiver benefits are a fairly recent phenomenon, despite legislation dating back to the late 1970s that provided caregivers with services including education, legal council, emotional support, and respite care, according to the Family Caregiver Alliance.
But it wouldn’t be until 2019 that employers started to recognize their employees were struggling with these responsibilities after noticing greater absenteeism and lower productivity, both of which were negatively impacting their bottom line, according to SHRM. That year, 28% of employer respondents to a survey by AARP and Northeast Business Group on Health said they offered paid leave benefits either exclusively for or able to be used by caregivers, 8% said they have leave policies for caregiving for someone other than their immediate family, and 17% provide employees with the ability to donate leave to a caregiver colleague.
The issue of mental health support for the American workforce continues to be a huge problem for employers. It has become as important as employee physical health. And the mindset of the employer regarding mental health priority is as essential as the mindset of the employee. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, well-being and mental health at work are continuing to decline in 2023. With a growing tug of war between bosses and employees and deepening mistrust, company leaders are still missing the mark when it comes to workplace mental health priorities. Deloitte research indicates 77% of employees have reported burnout at their current job, and a massive 91% report that feelings of stress and frustration have a negative impact on the quality of their work.
In 2021, I reported a survey conducted by OnePoll, which showed that 62% of American workers are worried their bosses would think less of them for taking mental health days. The study polled 2,000 employed American workers, 57% of whom said mental health isn’t a good enough reason to take time off. Seven in 10 said they’d rather take an entire day off work than a few hours—all to avoid telling their employer why they’re taking the time off. An additional 67% said they’re more likely to keep it vague and just tell their employer they have “an appointment” if they have to take time off for mental health care. Over half (56%) of respondents also felt like their employer would think they're unable to perform their job if they requested time off for mental health care.
Two new studies conducted in June and July of this year indicate that mental health problems in the workplace continue to worsen due to six mistakes employers are making:
ResumeLab’s Mental Health July, 2023 study of over 1,000 U.S. based employees found that 60% of the workers surveyed feel discriminated against because of their mental health condition. A full 68% are concerned that disclosing their mental health issues would harm their professional reputation. And 49% report work pressures and 42% say excessive workloads cause mental health struggles. Additional top findings include the following:
“This data confirms that fear and stigmas surrounding mental health in the workplace still exist,” says Agata Szczepanek, career expert at Resumelab. “While much progress has been made to support workers, continuing to improve policies and building inclusive and accepting work environments should remain a priority for companies,” Szczepanek concluded.
A June survey by the Northeast Business Group on Health (NEBGH) found that about one in four respondents (26%) say employers never identify what their employees’ mental health needs might be, nor do they test whether workers are aware of mental health programs and how effective those programs might be. Nearly three in 10 employers (29%) do not use social media and internal online tools to enhance their mental health strategies. On the positive side, a little less than half of respondents (47%) believe managers are always or usually engaged in breaking the mental health stigma, and 49% say their managers know how to respond to an employee’s mental health needs and steer them toward necessary resources.
Ellen Rudolph, founder and CEO of WellTheory—inspired by her own autoimmune disease—believes employers remain in the dark about what provisions they should make for their employees. She identifies four ways they can raise their awareness and support employee mental health:
Rather than simply checking boxes, Rudolph concludes that employers should be looking to provide holistic offerings that promote long-term wellness and view their employees as a whole person.
Employers missing the mark can raise their grades by holding discussions with workers on the importance of self-care, work-life balance and the de-stigmatization of mental health issues. Plus, they can encourage micro-breaks throughout the workday and stress the importance of PTO, vacations and self-care plans for each worker along with offering consultations on these plans. Lastly, employers can prioritize a mentally well culture by developing written policies so all employees know where the organization stands on mental health priorities. One thing is certain. Any action leaders take to support employee well-being and mental health will boost the company’s bottom line in the long run.
U.S. employers feel that they are coming up short when it comes to meeting the mental health needs of their employees, according to the Northeast Business Group on Health. (Vichai Phububphapan/iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Employers give themselves poor marks in terms of providing mental health services to their employees but high scores for supporting initiatives to improve diversity, equity and inclusion among their rank and file, according to a new survey by the Northeast Business Group on Health (NEBGH).
A Northeast Business Group on Health survey, published Monday, found that 26% of employers never identify the needs of employees, nor the “awareness and effectiveness” of their mental health programs. About three in ten respondents don’t have messaging campaigns through social media and internal platforms on mental health.
While employers and health organizations in the northeast region say they promote positive work qualities such as a flexible environment and work-life balance, many are still falling short of meeting the mental health needs of their workforce, according to a survey released Monday.
Overall, 52% of employers said they always or usually provide easily accessible information about mental health resources to their employees through a range of platforms, according to a survey conducted by the Northeast Business Group on Health, a coalition that focuses on employer health benefits issues.
Additionally, 26% of companies do not identify needs or test the effectiveness of their mental health programs, and 29% do not incorporate messaging campaigns through social media or internal marketing campaigns into their mental health strategy, the survey found.
The Northeast Business Group on Health conducted its Well Gauge survey to understand how employers are supporting a mental well-being culture. More than 140 corporations who are members of the coalition and are based in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut responded to the survey.
Three-quarters of employers said that they always or usually support a healthy work-life balance and 85% support a flexible work environment.
Amy Tippett-Stangler, senior vice president leading the organization’s mental health initiatives at NEBGH, said that businesses need to improve on identifying mental health needs and testing the effectiveness of current mental health programs.
“I do think doing a pulse check against small targeted surveys on the very specific benefits that they're offering, on a fairly frequent basis, would go a long way,” Tippett-Stangler said. She added that awareness campaigns and efforts to ensure mental health is a part of the core business model would also further support workforce needs.
The Northeast Business Group on Health, based in Midtown, has employer and purchaser members that cover 8 million lives in the U.S. and 12 million across the globe.—A.D.