advogroup.co.uk |mental health challanges
advo interview of proposition,
advo’s Advocate magazine caught up about the mental health challenges fa can help build resilience and positive Q. Firstly Simon, can you tell us a little bit about you and your role at Aetna International?
Sure. A marketer by profession, I’ve been in product, proposition and innovation roles in health insurance f the past 15 years – the last two with Aetna Internation having come from a UK domestic PMI provider. It’s been a fascinating journey as product development has moved way beyond just treatment benefit limits t finding ways that actively manage everyday health care needs – mental, emotional and physical. Q. What’s driven that change in health insurance?
There’s been a conscious shift in mindset to a proactive, preventative and personalised approach rather than just stepping in when someone is already sick. It’s a move we’ve been championing at Aetna International and it’s particularly important when it comes to mental health, where there can be hidden costs to both employers and insurers that a reactive approach may never fully account for. If we don’t engage early enough with a member, for example, then we might not associate an underlying mental health issue with a claim for co-morbidities. The knock on impact for an employer could be a potentially delayed return to work. Equally, if we don’t take a holistic view of a member’s health at point of claim, then we may miss the opportunity to support someon with the emotional impact that diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation can often have. So, engaging early and supporting holistically means a much bette outcome for patient, employer and insurer. Q. What do you see as the biggest challenges to earlier mental health intervention?
Simon Miller
Senior Director of Proposition Aetna International
I think a lot of employers and providers are either ove reliant on a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to mental wel being support or, at the other end of the spectrum, a providing a suite of solutions that leaves an employee potentially confused and disengaged.
Our research tells us that members want four things: a clear understanding of their mental health and well-
advocate autumn 2020 | advogroup.co.uk | 22
