As technology evolves, it has made many previously time-consuming tasks much more efficient. One of the tasks that have been vastly improved by technology within the past few years is visiting the doctor. That is all thanks to the innovation of telemedicine, which is the ability to communicate with a medical professional and receive basic treatments through video chatting features.
Telemedicine is being hailed by many as one of the best improvements to healthcare within recent years. It provides an array of benefits to all kinds of people and yet, many employees still are not utilizing it. In fact, it is estimated that over 80 percent of companies have less than a tenth of their employees utilizing telemedicine programs. It is a problem when your company offers something as useful as telemedicine but no one takes advantage of it. Luckily, we’re here to break down how you can get more employees to start utilizing telemedicine programs.
Lack of Awareness
It is hard for employees to use something that they do not know exists. Since telemedicine has only recently become a major benefit being offered by many companies, with only about 70 percent of all companies offering telemedicine, many employees do not yet expect their company to offer it. That is why it is so important that companies take time to make a company-wide announcement about its telemedicine program. They should also provide clear instructions on how to find out more information about it.
Lay out the Benefits Clearly
You cannot just tell your employees that you are offering a new healthcare feature without explaining exactly how it helps them and then expect them to start using it. People can be skeptical of changes to things, especially those that deal with their health. That is why they need to have something that clearly demonstrates how the new change can benefit them.
Communicate the benefits of telemedicine, by clearly laying out the main benefits of telemedicine such as eliminating long wait times and reducing healthcare cost. By explaining these benefits and having them readily available, makes employees much more likely to understand why they should be using telemedicine.
Say It Again
When it comes to employee communications, companies should never take a “one and done” approach. Employees can get busy and it is not uncommon for them to miss an email or two if it is not related to what they are working on. That is why it is so important that companies use targeted internal communications to promote educational materials regarding their telemedicine program multiple times.
Optimal times to do this would be around cold and flu season, as well as allergy season, which is when many employees will likely need to talk to their doctor. Also, take this opportunity to directly communicate with certain types of employees who are at a higher chance of needing to speak to a doctor, such as employees with children and warehouse workers; personalized communications is key
Communication is the foundation upon which employee engagement is built. To find out how you can improve your corporate communication to get employees to participate in more programs, contact us today.
