Employers have invested more workplace support for men’s health over the last year, new research has revealed.
In fact, over a third (35%) of employers have invested in employee benefits specific for men’s health and those assigned male at birth over the past 12 months, confirmed new research from digital health app Peppy to mark Movember, highlighting men’s health issues.
This comprises 23% of employers who put support in place in the past year and 12% who are putting support in place right now. This trend for growth is set to continue with a further 8% planning to offer men’s health support in the coming 12 months, and a further 8% in a year or more’s time.
MEN’S HEALTH MATTERS
Peppy’s research attributes this substantial growth to employers taking men’s health matters more seriously and a greater understanding of the underlying psychology around how best to support men and their health.
“One of the main issues when trying to manage men in their health issues is their general unwillingness to seek help. Even when a health matter escalates, they are less likely to access the support they need,” highlighted Helen Lake, Director of Men’s Health, at Peppy. “Not only is this a vicious circle for the health of the individual but it also impacts the business if the member of staff needs time off because a condition has worsened. Dealing with men’s healthcare matters early via workplace support counters both of these issues and leads to better health outcomes.”
BETTER SUPPORT & COMMUNICATION
The research shows that men respond better to support and communication on specific conditions than on general health and wellbeing messages. Messaging needs to really strike a chord with current concerns, or the support offered may be ignored or overlooked.
It’s also vital that men have access to support from specialists. When men do seek help, the support really needs to get to the root of the problem quickly, highlighted Peppy’s research. Knowing that they are able to speak to someone with expert knowledge in a particular field, can help men more readily engage.
WORKPLACE DISCRETION & SUPPORT
People are also much more confident in asking for help if they know it will be dealt with in a very private way. Discretion is key, and group or peer support may be less utilised by men.
As well as providing male-specific confidential support from specialists, there is a further obstacle for employers to overcome: namely, communicating to male employees that it is acceptable to ask for help. Having a supportive workplace when everyone, particularly men, know that they are allowed the time to address any health concerns is extremely enabling.
“We know how disruptive it can for employers when male employees need to take time away from work because they failed to address a health matter in a timely way,” continued Lake. “Men are under-served in many areas of healthcare, but we are pleased to see so many employers now recognising that the health of their male staff, and their business, can be improved by taking a gender-focussed approach.”
ENCOURAGING MEN TO TALK ABOUT THE HEALTH AT WORK
Check out the article below on why and how employers can encourage men to talk more about their health at work.
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