Challenge
Rethinking Health and Wellness for 15,000 Employees
When this national healthcare delivery organization and health plan implemented its first Icario program, it was funded by a grant to provide health and wellness incentives to hospital employees in Northern California.
As part of the pilot, Icario would need to replace the employer’s existing program, which included manual processes and suffered from low employee engagement.
The following year, two other service areas launched a similar pilot with Icario to replace the groups’ existing health and wellness portal and administer the tracking of more than 50 health actions for 10,000 hospital employees.
Additionally, the original service area moved forward with a contract to launch a comprehensive program for its 5,000 employees.
Solution
Getting Creative to Increase Member Satisfaction and Engagement Throughout the Year
As part of the pilot, Icario designed the program around the employer’s internal model of care, which was built on the concepts of quality, care experience, and safety. The new platform includes a calendar tool, event scheduling and registration portal, and a communication and messaging system. Members engage in the program by completing quizzes, reading educational content, and familiarizing themselves with the employer’s safety requirements.
Using gamification techniques, employees can earn badges and points, join various walking challenges, and take advantage of new offerings as the program changes. This group also launched an integrated step program using incentives made available to a select group of 500 sedentary employees.
The structure of the solution is designed to drive continuous engagement. Members can’t complete all activities at once and max out their earning opportunities early in the program year. They have to return to the platform periodically to complete tasks and earn unique bonuses as they become available throughout the year. This positively impacts the levels of engagement and member satisfaction.
Communication is key for building and maintaining a successful wellness initiative. The Icario team designed and introduced several communication strategies to keep members informed and engaged as new activities and challenges become available. Targeted communications include emails and pop-up notices with scheduled text messages and reminders slated for the near future.
Thanks to a dynamic and interactive platform design, members can monitor their advancement easily. Indicators show progress toward specific badges as well as the annual program earning maximum. This takes the guesswork out of the equation so members know exactly where they are in the program, what promotions are available, and how many more points or badges they can earn.
Results
Motivated Members Actively Engage in Wellness Programs
The Icario platform now tracks health actions for 15,000 employees in Northern California. To date, the employer has seen nearly a 50% increase in health and wellness activity engagement.
The dedicated Icario account team reviews the program annually to keep the employer informed about how many members engaged in at least one promotion as well as how many rewards they’ve earned and redeemed.
Engagement rates have exceeded 90% over the past four years. In one year alone, 91% of eligible members engaged in at least one health action during the program year. The step tracking program has been particularly popular, with an increase in interest since the introduction of new goal setting and earning opportunities.
