Unify Health Services

Preventing workplace injuries, musculoskeletal disorders, chronic pain, and similar health issues substantially minimizes compensation claims while upholding higher lifestyle standards for employees. HR professionals and CHROs have time and again reiterated that an employee’s health literally translates to wealth within an organization. Prevention programs—such as the ones provided by Unify Health Services (UHS)—not only validate the merit of this hypothesis but also showcase multiple benefits to the employee from medical, insurance, and recruitment perspectives.

“Prevention programs and post-injury services not only reduce claims from a risk management perspective but also serve as tools to uphold sustainability in the recruitment side of the business,” begins UHS President Kelly Ingram- Mitchell. UHS provides customized onsite injury prevention solutions in accordance with their client’s organizational safety initiatives, effectively steering clients away from the classic cookie-cutter approach that fails to efficiently manage injuries, let alone prevent them. Kelly shares a typical example to highlight the merit of such programs: “By encouraging employees to report a physical discomfort or musculoskeletal issue to their onsite Industrial Specialist at the onset, employers can prevent the risk of injury and greater health risks to their employees and help them recover at a faster rate by remediating the relevant healthcare services preemptively.”

Such practices reinforce positive behavior and healthy lifestyle choices, all the while boosting employees’ morale and encouraging them to respond to physical discomfort or health issues immediately.

Following the norms set forth by Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), UHS conducts ergonomic job coaching, stretch and injury prevention programs utilizing athletic trainers, to name a few, which stand as testaments to combating musculoskeletal injuries in the workplace. UHS promotes safety and health programs for the employees, thereby helping them recognize the benefits of a positive lifestyle. More importantly, such injury prevention programs serve as an indirect incentive to the company as well. As an added benefit from an actuarial perspective, clients could demonstrate the addition of yet another safety initiative, thereby further reducing the cost of claims. Experts at UHS have demonstrated a 67 percent reduction in workers’ compensation claims through their prevention programs. Through their ‘Fit For Duty’ onsite program, the company provides one on one ergonomic job coaching to improve workers’ body mechanics, understanding of proper ergonomics and ultimately minimize the risk of injuries. “We were not only able to improve the productivity of the team but also improve the overall health of employees, leading to high satisfaction among the workforce,” says Jill Baxter, Vice President - Business Development.

Without resting on such laurels, UHS aspires to provide an allencompassing program for its customers such that employees can incorporate services such as ergonomic assessments and the like without the need to go through various providers. Moreover, observing the merit of such preand post-injury services, alongside prevention programs, HR professionals and CHROs can exponentially reduce their claims cost without compromising on employee well-being, all the while helping employees realize the true value of a healthy lifestyle and proactive work ethics.