As healthcare marketers, we often focus on reaching current and potential patients with information about our service lines. And while this is a tried and true method for increasing service line volume, adding more creative approaches can be a very successful marketing strategy. One example is campaigns targeting employers to promote health risk assessments (HRAs) – questionnaires designed to help individuals evaluate their health risks and quality of life.
HRA programs have a variety of benefits for employers and employees, not to mention health systems. They make sense for everyone involved, which makes it easy to encourage employers to participate.
For employers, you can help save them money on healthcare costs and provide resources that can improve employee health and well-being. This can also lead to a number of other positive outcomes, such as increased productivity, workplace satisfaction, and retention rates. Employees appreciate these programs because they help them take charge of their health and can reduce their healthcare costs. And health systems benefit by being able to direct people to the resources they need.
Health Risk Assessments: Benefits for Employers, Individuals, and Health Systems
Here are some of the ways HRAs can benefit employers, employees and health systems:
Employers
- Reduce health insurance costs
- Reduce sick days
- Improve productivity and retention rates
Employees
- Reduce health insurance costs
- Help employees take charge of their health
- Provide more personalized care
Health Systems
- Provide a wealth of information to improve population health and allocate resources more efficiently
- Raise patient awareness of service lines
- Introduce employers to corporate wellness programs
- Create more personalized patient experience
What to Include on a Health Risk Assessment
When developing a health risk assessment questionnaire, you want to collect as much information as possible. Understanding a person’s health concerns and behaviors will help you identify the areas where they are likely to engage with your health system. Some of the items you should focus on include:
- Age, height, and weight
- Physical activity and exercise habits
- Nutrition practices
- Sleep habits
- Family health history
- Chronic health conditions
- Prescription medications
- Stress levels
- Smoking history, alcohol consumption, and recreational drug use
- Work satisfaction
- Willingness to make lifestyle changes
- Willingness to engage with providers on various health concerns
- Cancer screenings
- Hearing and vision impairment
- Flu vaccinations
Integrating Your HRA Program and Your Marketing Strategy
The key to a successful health risk assessment program is being able to follow up after you conduct the initial assessment. Developing HRAs that employees can fill out online will streamline the process and make it easy to personalize the feedback provided to each individual based on their health concerns and needs. It can also inform your larger marketing strategy as you begin to see trends emerge.
Developing a health risk assessment program and marketing that program to employers in the communities you serve is a great way to increase patient and service line volume. Contact LIGHTSTREAM to learn how we can help.