Steve Brown, Commercial Director UK at Teladoc Health, a Keep Britain Working Vanguard organisation looks at the latest report –
As providers of virtual healthcare to large businesses, we are aligned with the government’s proposed Workplace Health System, as we have seen first-hand how healthcare benefits help occupational health move from reactive to proactive. As this report highlights, employers often only discover a problem once a fit note arrives.
The overarching message is that the future workplace health model shifts from reactive sickness management to proactive, digitally enabled prevention and retention, with occupational health and virtual healthcare working together to keep people in work rather than supporting them only after they have left work.
At Teladoc Health UK, we have long recognised that the biggest opportunities to prevent people from leaving work due to ill health are:
“Early, skilled occupational health intervention is a no-brainer. As the report puts it, “the cheapest intervention is always the earliest one.” However, coordination is key: primary and secondary care, occupational health, HR and line managers need to work together, with the individual and the practical barriers they face at the centre of everything. Success shouldn’t mean simply getting someone back to work, it’s about helping them stay well and remain in work. Remote services can play an important role in connecting that support and smoothing the patient experience.” – David Griffiths, Chief Medical Officer at Teladoc Health UK
We are pleased to see explicit recognition of the need for ‘innovative, digital delivery’ being necessary for scale. Virtual healthcare acting as a scalable way of delivering early intervention, triage, assessment, treatment and case management is something we have advocated for since Teladoc Health began.
One of the report’s strongest themes is the establishment of a dedicated Workplace Health Provision model, centered around workplace health case management. This approach, in our experience, is particularly useful with mental health and MSK conditions – both of which cause major work limitations for younger and older workers respectively.
“Every day, I see the difference timely mental health support can make to someone’s wellbeing and ability to stay in work. I also see the impact when people struggle for too long without access to help. That is why I welcome the Keep Britain Working paper’s focus on early intervention. When people can quickly access evidence-based support, including structured short-term therapy, they are more likely to recover, remain connected to work, and avoid longer periods of absence. If we are serious about improving workforce participation and preventing avoidable work loss, mental health support must be a core part of workplace health provision, not an afterthought, but a fundamental investment in people.” – Colin Preece, Clinical Head of Mental Health at Teladoc Health UK
“We welcome the focus on preventing avoidable work loss through earlier intervention and better workplace health support. Musculoskeletal conditions remain a leading cause of sickness absence, and rapid access to physiotherapy can play a vital role in helping people stay in work, recover sooner, and return to normal activities with confidence. The report rightly shifts the conversation from managing absence to supporting participation, with a welcome emphasis on measurable outcomes, early access to care, and coordinated support for employees and employers alike.” – Will Kenton, Head of Physiotherapy at Teladoc Health UK
With faster adjustments, the report suggests measurable retention outcomes for providers and visible improvements for employees.
Whether it’s working alongside Group Income Protection Insurers and intermediaries, or with retail customers directly, we are well placed to support the KBW objectives of preventing periods of sickness from turning into long-term worklessness.
We look forward to continuing to support the government with the next phase of Keep Britain Working and are proud to be closely aligned with clear advocation for virtual healthcare provisions at scale.
Useful links:
Link to the online press release: New plan for Britain’s first Workplace Health System – GOV.UK
Teladoc Health offers virtual healthcare services to employers, insurance providers & brokers and banks. Our virtual medical care offering spans Virtual GP, Second Medical Opinion, Virtual Physiotherapy, Virtual Nutrition and more. To get in touch about how our team can assist in offering virtual healthcare services to your team, click here to book a chat.
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