The COVID-19 pandemic has been a wake-up call from a workforce health and wellness perspective for many organisations across the globe and addressing the role of the Chief Health Officer could not be more important. The International SOS Foundation has commissioned a new paper entitled, Chief Health Officer 2030: Addressing the Employee Health Needs of the Future.
Featuring brand new research from employer health professionals and experts around the world, the paper captures current thinking surrounding the response to COVID-19 and how best to prepare for the long journey towards healthier employees and communities. Our survey findings represent responses from more than 100 professionals who are responsible for employee health across the world: with representation from those working in the Americas, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa and Europe. More than one third of respondents hold Health, Medical, HSE or Chief Health Officer roles. The survey took place during the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2020.
KEY FINDINGS
Through the research and consulting with experts around the world, the paper concludes on the importance of employee health and wellness as well as the impact on the C-Suite in defining the role of the Chief Health Officer within their organisation. The key findings of the paper include:
- Health and wellness is a broad issue that goes beyond COVID-19 – all aspects must be addressed.
- Addressing health and wellness meaningfully requires leadership at C-Suite level.
- The Chief Health Officer is best placed – and highly trusted – to deliver on Health and Wellness commitments.
- Global organisations need to be able to tap into the regional health expertise seamlessly, especially in times of crisis.
- Chief Health Officers can be internal appointments, external providers, or a combination of the two.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ORGANISATIONS
Partner with a Chief Health Officer to manage all business-critical health issues
- Health regulatory and policy compliance which can be a challenge as it varies at global, regional and local levels. Reliable and up-to-date information is key to ensure you keep complying with the different legal frameworks where you operate.
- Workplace wellbeing management and improvement - Your workforce wellbeing, both physical and emotional, is critical to maximise your employees' productivity and ensure business continuity. It is also today seen as a lever for recruitment, retention and competitive advantage.Monitoring of the escalating costs to business associated with lack of proactive health risk management.
Recruit a Chief Health Office that fits your organisation's needs
- Management experience from working with multinationals and across industries
- Industry knowledge of best practices and benchmarking in your sector
- Early visibility of emerging health trends affecting various industries
Once resourced, consider asking your Chief Health Officer for key elements
- Ensure to have access to fact-based information from reliable sources
- Ability to analyse the accessed information and highlight the relevant parts to your organisation
- Providing the information to your workforce and communicate effectively