Is tech the answer to improving employees’ mental wellbeing?
Winter is often the time when people’s mental and physical wellbeing suffers most. The seasonal strain has caused many people to turn to technology, specifically mobile apps, to monitor and maintain their own mental wellbeing.
This trend reveals a potential gap in mental healthcare provision, and points to the proactive role technology plays in bridging it. Employers need to recognise the demand from employees for mental health support year-round and take advantage of the opportunity to provide this via technology, creating a more balanced and productive workplace and a better employee experience.
Workplace pressure
The workplace must take some responsibility for the state of UK mental health. Our latest Employee Benefits Watch research, found that half of UK employees feel their workplace has a negative impact on their physical, mental and financial wellbeing.
AXA’s Stress Index 2017 also found that during a typical week, more than 80% of people feel stressed at least some of the time, with people in the UK citing their number one pressure as work. This is partly due to our ‘always on’ work culture, with 49% of those surveyed saying they were concerned about it and more than half admitting to taking work calls (59%) or checking emails (55%) outside of business hours.
Could consumer applications help to buck this trend?
Why the rise of mental health tech?
This growth of mental health apps comes at a time when mental health services are under unprecedented strain. Referrals to community mental health teams and crisis services have risen 15%, even while the numbers of doctors and nurses are falling. Meanwhile, 80% of NHS bosses are concerned they lack the necessary funding to deal with mental health issues.
Mental health discussions are still often seen as taboo subjects between employees, employers and healthcare professionals. Yet having accessible technology that allows employees another way of managing their mental health could dramatically increase wellbeing at work. Technology provides another avenue to monitor how you are feeling and suggest coping mechanisms. CB Insights found that more health tech start-ups have begun to raise funds.
What is the impact on employers?
Increasing numbers of people are crying out for mental health support: our research shows that improving mental wellbeing is a life goal for almost 40% of UK employees. However, at present this seems to be falling on deaf ears, as just 18% of employers support this through their benefits programme. This is a significant missed opportunity for employers. Supporting mental wellbeing can lead to improved employee engagement, reduced absence rates, and higher productivity.
What do employers need to do?
Employers need to invest in software that enables employees to access mental health support on their own terms, wherever and whenever they choose. Health apps can form one part of this care, but they are not a one-size-fits-all solution. Today’s workforce is highly heterogeneous and employers need to find a solution that suits everyone. This is where technology is so instrumental, and increasingly indispensable.
Flexible wellness pots offer one solution. Through easy-to-use intuitive software, employees are given an allowance to spend on their own wellbeing as they see fit. Employees can choose and be reimbursed for wellbeing benefits, including gym memberships or physiotherapy appointments, all through a consumer-friendly app.
What’s next?
Providing apps or flexible wellness pots is only part of a solution. They can also open the door for the use of more sophisticated tools, such as data analytics. These can be used to get to the root cause of stress, and create a workplace that boosts happiness and productivity well before problems arise.
Analyst, Josh Bersin cites one forward-thinking employer who used smart badges to monitor employees’ movements at work. Finding that the biggest contributor to employee happiness was walking around the office – they relocated conference rooms to encourage more movement.
Caring for employees’ mental health will never be an easy task, but it is made infinitely less complex by technology. Those who begin to focus on this will gain a competitive advantage, delivering a best-in-class employee experience that retains happy, productive employees.
David Bourne is head of health and wellbeing at Thomsons Online Benefits.
This article was provided by Thomsons Online Benefits.