How to increase participation in health screenings, encourage preventive visits

Today, more organizations are adopting the motto “prevention is better than a cure” when it comes to the health of their employees. Unhealthy lifestyle choices are linked to the majority of employer health care costs and, according to studies, often have a dramatic impact on productivity.
“At most organizations, employees understand the benefits of preventive care and want to know their risk factors,” says Amber Hulme, Medical Mutual Vice President, Central and Southern Ohio. “But they also might need a push, which is why it’s still a challenge to get employees engaged.”
Smart Business spoke with Hulme about the importance of preventive care and health screenings, why employees may be reluctant to participate and what organizations can do to incentivize employees to focus more on prevention.
Why is preventive care important?
By promoting preventive care, organizations are making sure their employees have a baseline for their health. This will help them be more aware of potential problems, get diagnosed earlier and avoid more serious health conditions.
When employees are aware of what’s going on with their body and can stay healthy, they are able to come to work more often and be more productive.
How can health screenings help?
Health screenings measure key physical characteristics, such as height and weight, body mass index, blood pressure, blood cholesterol and blood sugar. Over the past several years, organizations have started introducing workplace health screenings as a way to evaluate the overall health of their employees and identify the biggest risk factors.
They also give organizations the information they need to work with their health insurance carrier to better address the specific needs.
Health screenings, however, are definitely not a replacement for regular medical examinations or wellness visits with a health care provider. They are also not intended as a way to diagnose disease.
Why are employees sometimes reluctant to participate?
There are many reasons. But one of the most common is a fear of exposing personal health information and not understanding how it will be used. Employees also may believe the information will be used against them later, and they might be subject to consequences, penalties or discrimination.
In addition, employees could just be more comfortable going to their own doctor. In those cases, organizations can choose to incentivize annual physicals wherever the employee wants to go. That way, the employee sees their doctor and gets the same tests, but their employer doesn’t see the results and the organization still has proof that it happened.
What types of incentives do organizations use?
It depends on the organization. Today, the majority of employers in the U.S. offer employees some sort of wellness incentive. Monetary incentives have become the most common.
Under health care reform, organizations can offer incentives worth up to 30 percent of the total annual cost of individual coverage. That could mean contributing to a health savings account, discounting premiums or waiving their cost-sharing responsibility, which refers to their deductibles, copays and coinsurance.
Paid time off is another popular incentive, particularly in the public sector.
What else is important to know?
Education and effective communication is the key to help employees get past any concerns they may have, especially if those concerns involve their personal health information.
It’s also important to create a culture of health, regardless of whether you offer an incentive or how much it is.
When employees feel like they are in it together, they share their experiences, like losing weight or getting an early diagnosis that might save their life. Those kinds of personal messages, from people they know, can be powerful motivators.

When employees start encouraging each other to be healthier, that becomes an incentive in itself.

Insights Health Care is brought to you by Medical Mutual