Manage HR Magazine | Friday, October 07, 2022
Though the unpredictable course of the pandemic challenges finding crucial steps in the worker compensation industry, it has emphasised mental health concerns and automation as the priority.
FREMONT, CA: Mental health and associated stresses in the workplace are of chief concern, especially in the post-pandemic world. Many employers are now recognising that mental health is not only as important as physical health but also directly impacts physical health and overall well-being.
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Studies show that treating mental conditions can be twice or three times as expensive as treating a physical ailment alone. Researchers also acknowledge that people with physical health diagnoses are more likely to have mental health issues. Treating them together elevates the possibility of achieving improved outcomes and reducing costs.
The lack of behavioural health experts makes the issue worse. As a result, virtual behavioural health has escalated in recent years and will continue to be a viable and highly utilised source for treatment. Failing to tackle mental health drivers accompanying physical injuries prolongs recovery and increases the chances of injury development into chronic pain. This indicates employees with no proper treatment face severe pain, further affecting their mental well-being.
Research shows the likelihood of injured employees being treated for depression is 45 per cent higher than their non-injured counterparts. Moreover, getting hurt at work increases mental hardship risks.
As workers’ compensation payers navigate challenges faced due to the pandemic, many companies will emphasise boosting claim staff efficiency through automation, outsourcing, technology, and other tools. During the pandemic’s peak, technology use increased significantly in every industry, including workers’ compensation. However, the technological boom during the pandemic was not seen in later years.
It is expected that companies will continue to steadily integrate new technologies into their claims initiatives for several reasons, like filling gaps for staffing shortages, managing remote workforces, and improving injured employee experiences. Thus, experts believe many players will undertake new technology initiatives in the post-pandemic era.
Adopting Automation
With workers’ compensation claim teams facing staffing challenges, companies will shift their focus to automating repeatable administrative tasks, enabling existing workers to work on the most complex and high-value projects. Many technologies are introduced, from improving straight-through processing using rules-engine automation to implying advanced predictive analytics.
Enhancing Training
More employee turnover calls for the need for more training. Thus, the workers’ compensation industry is to further embrace technology designed to assist new employees to receive work operations faster and incorporate automated guidance into their everyday tasks, thereby minimising the need for printed manuals.
Retaining Internal Professionals
Claims organisations will emphasise using technology to record and operationalise internal expertise to alleviate the risk of top employees' leaving or retiring. Using technology to document will secure employees' data as they leave companies.
Improving User Experience and Workflows
Along with boosting automation and improving training, claims organisations will offer better digital experiences and workflows for their staff, whether that refers to offering access to portals streamlining information in one place, or leveraging predictive analytics to ensure every staff member is assigned the right claim from the start to prevent delays and frustrations down the line.
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