And the Solution is Simple;
It’s not the Cost,
It’s the Productivity Lost!
Direct healthcare costs for physicians, hospitals and pharmacy are merely the tip of the healthcare inflation iceberg. Lurking just beneath the surface is a much more ominous and immediate threat to the health and well-being of the American Healthcare System and to American Employers and Workers, as well;
Indirect Healthcare Costs :
Presenteeism– A loss of workplace productivity resulting from employee health problems and/or personal issues.
Absenteeism– The habitual non-presence of an employee at his or her job. Possible causes of absenteeism include job dissatisfaction, ongoing personal issues and chronic medical problems.
Disability limitation in the ability to pursue an occupation because of a physical or mental impairment; also : a program providing financial support to one affected by disability.
Employee Turnover the ratio of the number of workers that had to be replaced in a given time period to the average number of workers. The cost of replacing an employee is a minimum of 150% of the employees annual compensation figure. The cost will be much higher (200% to 250% of annual compensation) for managerial and sales positions.
All tallied, indirect costs far exceed the direct costs for healthcare; and employee mental health problems, even in their mildest forms, are the single largest contributor to employers indirect healthcare costs. Absence, lost productivity and disability related to mental illness cost employers more than four times the total cost of employee medical treatment!* In addition to an impaired work performance and reduced productivity, employees with mental health problems, even at a sub-threshold level, make more Emergency Room visits, Primary Care Physician visits and have more non-psychiatric hospital admissions than their mentally well counterparts.* If employers were to even partly invest in recognizing employee mental health issues, the returns would be staggering, yet the answer is right in front of their eyes; employee performance.
End of part 1
Not to worry, the answer is coming in the following posts.
Mitchell R. Weisberg, MD
Founder, CEO and Personal Physician
Optimal Performance MD
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