JAMES SPENCER: So I think we're at a crucial stage now, and benefits investment is at an all-time high. But appreciation still isn't there, so part of this starts by making it relatable to people. And what we're seeing the most progressive employers doing are developing a communication strategy that is embedded in things like personas, so picking out four or five different types of individuals at different life stages and thinking about how benefits are relevant to them and what aspects of the benefits package most resonate with them.
Now, that can be done in a kind of stylized or cartoonized way if that works for an employer, or it can be done quite effectively with real lives and real individuals. And you might have people in the workplace that are passionate about a particular benefit, or it really resonates with them. And I think getting those individuals to maybe write a brief quote, do a piece to camera, even write a testimonial based on how they use the benefit and why it was relevant to them-- they're all things that we see progressive employers doing to make sure that folks feel their benefits are relevant.
That's the first aspect around communication, and then I think it's about the portfolio of what you offer. So once you've done the listening piece and understanding what employees really want and look for, maybe done some benchmarking to see what's prevalent in your industry and the expectations there, too, then it comes to making real-life decisions. So one thing we're seeing right now in certain markets is, for instance, providing employees with mortgage advice availability. And we know there's a cost of living crisis, and these are real scenarios people are living with. You do that.
Then sometimes looking at things like access to no hands or virtual physiotherapy, for example, because we know more and more employees are working from home, and that's a real challenge there, too. So again, we haven't got to overcomplicate it, but I think a lot of it is just about making it relevant to people's real lives in your workforce and in your organization.
DR. SUBA M: Yeah.
JAMES SPENCER: So as we think about health and the role of the employer, what do you think that's going to develop and evolve into in the future, Suba?
DR. SUBA M: Really good question. I think, firstly, we need to understand that health, or at least remind ourselves, that health is not the absence of illness. Health is that entire state of flourishing and feeling fulfilled with all that you do. So we spend so much time at work, so I don't think you can disaggregate, here's your health, and here's your work. And that's where we say, work-life integration. That's not work-life balance.
So if you look at health and what actually contributes to a good health, then you think about the wider determinants of health care or health essentially for an individual. So it's not just about your demographics and your age and your lifestyle. It is also about your working conditions, and it is about your home and the air quality and the nutrition that you've got, the social interactions, and how you feel at work, and education. So there are lots of variables that ladder up to your holistic health.
So research looks at what contributes. What's the weighting of these different variables to your health? And from a population perspective, only 20% is relevant based on clinical care. But I think that's what we as individuals think about health. So we think about health and what happens in a hospital. We don't necessarily index health as what we do, those micro decisions at home and the workplace.
So I think if employers understood that 80% of what a population's health could be influenced by, is the socioeconomic stuff, the environmental elements, the lifestyle elements, then suddenly an employer is not a passive bystander in the health care ecosystem, but an absolute active player. And I think it is about time to, A, understand that those are the other variables that are at play, that you have an influence and impact over.
And B, at a point in time where we need all hands on deck to ensure that our population and our planetary health needs saving, I think that employers play a vital role to lean in to what is already within their gift to influence. And I think when you position it like that, I don't think it's an expectation. But it's a duty that we all have to lean in to do. So yeah, it's exciting that this is an opportunity and a privilege to do this.
JAMES SPENCER: I think you're right. There's a commercial element in here as well. So I read recently that for every 13 people in the workforce, one is currently at long-term sick. So there's kind of an economic and commercial imperative for employers to make sure they're getting health care and getting good outcomes for their employees as well.
DR. SUBA M: Absolutely. And the other thing to note is that being at work and being at a good working place really contributes to better mental health and better overall health. So I think that it is a bidirectional relationship. So being at work can cause some stress, but actually it's an overall better for you. And the employer is in a really good position to make sure that they contribute to the health and well-being of the nation.
JAMES SPENCER: That's really good. Thank you.
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