Dive Brief:

• Employees are concerned about their health and well-being, but they lack specific knowledge of their health status and motivation to change poor behaviors, a recent survey from Aetna International found. The survey comprised more than 4,000 workers and 1,000 HR directors in the U.K., U.S., U.A.E. and Singapore.
• Nearly a quarter of respondents said they're concerned about their health but are to afraid to have a health check-up. A third of respondents said they lack the time to be sick, and 21% said they're unable to get time off to see a doctor. Nearly half said that if they were given time off, that would encourage them to get a health check.
• "In health psychology we look at why people may struggle to make the behavioural changes which would benefit their overall health. There are practical, social and psychological barriers — hence it's very complex, so the best solutions are often personalised and tailored to an individual's circumstances," Meg Arroll, health behavior change psychologist, said in a media release. "When we understand and break down limiting beliefs and barriers, we can start to make positive steps towards helping people change their health behaviours."

Dive Insight:

It may pay for employers to go the limit to encourage worker health. A Humana study from August 2019 found that a healthy workforce leads to higher productivity and healthcare savings. The health insurer said that highly engaged workers had lower medical costs and fewer emergency room visits and hospital admissions.

Some employers are being recognized for investing in employee health for all the advantages that a healthy workforce brings. Among these companies are Cigna, Intel and Microsoft, who topped the JUST Capital and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's list of companies that contribute to healthy families and communities.

Just as JUST Capital and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation have lauded employers who are supporting workers' health, employees pointed out in a November 2019 survey by Cancer and Careers that employers aren't doing enough to support their workers with serious or chronic health conditions. Kathy M. Flora, a career coach with Cancer and Careers, said in a media release announcing the findings that leadership had an key role in doing more to support workers' health.