Fighting cancer in the workplace

[prev] …basic protocol. They start with the employee going onto the online client management system, and answering some questions that allow us to estimate their personal risk of that cancer. Then we give them an appointment, and in the case of prostate cancer would arrange to do a blood test that looks at several biomarkers for that cancer. We write to them with the result, and if they have an abnormal result then they’re referred for further investigation, either to their GP in the NHS, or to a consultant specialist in that field if they have private medical insurance. You don’t have to do just one of these, you can mix and match – whatever you think is right for your workforce.’

What this means can be summed up in the words of one HP employee who was diagnosed: ‘Could you pass on my thanks to the breast nurse who examined me. If it wasn’t for her, it may not have been detected for a very long time.’

Hewlett Packard have undertaken four separate campaigns for their employees, covering cancers of the breast, prostate, skin and lung, which resulted in over 10,000 appointments in the UK, Scandinavia and USA. What this means for individuals can be summed up in the words of one HP employee who was diagnosed: ‘Could you pass on my thanks to the breast nurse who examined me. If it wasn’t for her, it may not have been detected for a very long time.’ From a business perspective, a key question is how this service is paid for. ‘There are various options,’ says Gordon Wishart. ‘It can be done under what’s called the salary sacrifice programme, which means an employee can get access to it without paying tax or National Insurance, and that gives a considerable saving. That can also be spread out over a year, so a £100 test can actually just cost £4-£5 a month. That’s if the employees pay for it themselves – but the company can also choose to pay for it on behalf of the employee.’

That, in fact, was the course chosen by Hewlett Packard. But why would a company – which, after all, needs to make a profit – do this, and what of that claim that this can actually save money? We asked Richard Stewart, Head of Flexible Benefits and Platform Services at Mazars, which now offers HSUK screenings to its 1,400 UK employees – and as a benefit to its clients. ‘From our perspective, there’s no point in doing this unless, from a value proposition point of view, it works. There are three elements to the value proposition for the health screening: first the employer subsidises it, second it is tax exempt, and third there’s is a corporate discount, which HSUK provide us with compared to their retail-based product, so that makes it super-valuable to an employee interested in looking after their health. It’s delivered at a much lower price than a traditional screen, and not duplicating what they could get at their GP’s surgery for free. But it is also broken down into different areas so you could potentially opt to have a screen for prostate cancer one year, then move on to another one the next.’

Anything that can raise awareness and detect cancer early will, in the real world, save the NHS money

When weighed against the potential costs of alternative schemes, the savings for the employer can also be considerable – and perhaps signal a sea change in the way we are going to approach employee health benefits in the future. ‘One of the most expensive benefits an employer can offer is full private medical insurance,’ says Richard. ‘Typically, that costs upwards of £600-£700 per employee per annum, and the thing that drives the inflation associated with that is the claims – and claims for cancer are by far the biggest. If you look at a typical organisation, they’ll have claims in the £100,000 category per individual. And once you’ve had the treatment, then you may have a period of months or years on some form of preventative drug – some of which are not available on the NHS and so have an additional expense – and then it may return, which means going through the cycle of treatment again. So, anything that can raise awareness and detect cancer early will, in the real world, save the NHS money, but in the corporate world it also helps with the very simple commercial reality of a loss ratio on a medical insurance scheme claims account. We are always on the lookout for innovative benefits – benefits that offer value for both the employer and the employee – and HSUK offers a great product.’

‘If something gets an early indication that something is not right, that is life-changing for that person, so it’s not difficult to become passionate about this’

Less tangible – but no less important – is the way in which such an offering strengthens the relationship between employer and employee. When it comes to feeling cared for by your company, what could be more powerful than it saving your life, or that of a partner or friend? It seems to be that rarest of things in business – a situation in which everyone wins. ‘This is why we like the product,’ says Richard. ‘All the pricing and tax boxes get ticked, but at the end of the day it’s also a really important thing. We’ve already seen it in our trials; if something gets an early indication that something is not right, that is life-changing for that person, so it’s not difficult to become passionate about this. This is a real way of helping fight cancer.’

For more information on HealthScreen UK, visit www.HealthScreenUK.com