Health Tech Could be the Key to a Fitter, Healthier Workforce

LONDON, January 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

• New online YouGov survey reveals a big majority (57%) of the British workforce would be open to monitoring their health with technology at work as long as their employer supplied a device to do so 

• The majority want to 'get fit and keep fit' with encouragement from their bosses 

• Only 5% of workers have already been provided with health tech by employers 

The workplace could be the best place for the mass adoption of health tech in the UK helping to improve and maintain employees' health through company wellness programmes - if only workers got more support from their employers.

And, despite the recent explosion of health tech ownership in the UK, leading to lots of personal data being generated, there are doubts from data academics about whether this information is being used to the best effect by individuals alone.^[1]

The third annual AXA PPP Health Tech & You State of the Nation online survey shows that 57% of the British workforce would be open to wearing a company paid-for fitness band or similar device during working hours to help monitor their health and wellbeing, as long as this was supplied to them free of charge by their employer.  This figure increases to nearly two-thirds (63%), if employers offer workers the device and a financial bonus for wearing it at work.

However, only a small number of working Brits (5%) say their employer currently provides health technology to workers - despite the potential benefits.

Data sharing 

One of the most surprising findings from this latest survey is that employees aren't shy about sharing their health data with their employers to help them improve the health and wellbeing of the workforce.  

Of those who would be likely to wear a fitness band at work, over half (58%) said they would be comfortable to share the data generated with their employer if it helped with the organisation's employee health and wellbeing programmes.

Dr Chris Tomkins, Head of Proactive Health, AXA PPP healthcare, said: "The increased use of health tech within the workplace could so easily be a win-win for both employer and employee. For the first time it is possible to support an individual throughout their journey from better understanding of their health to actual improvements through smart digital platforms.  Furthermore, there are often staff schemes with open platforms that enable individuals to use and share information from their own personal devices, ensuring their contribution is recognised.  

"Of course, some individuals are naturally concerned about how their data is used and employers are keen to have a clear separation between themselves and such personal data.   Therefore, both employer and employee could benefit from the expertise of using an independent third-party provider who can ensure privacy." he said.

The State Of The Nation survey was commissioned by AXA PPP healthcare as part of the AXA PPP Health Tech & You programme. Now in its third year, the YouGov survey questioned over 2,000 adults. The findings documented in this release relate to 1,249 working adults within the survey sample.

Richard Cooper, Head of Digital Marketing, AXA PPP healthcare, states: "The findings of the State of the Nation survey suggest that most employees are open to wearing health tech in the workplace to monitor their health, fitness and wellbeing. During the last three years, the AXA PPP Health Tech & You Awards programme has identified many new and emerging health tech innovations that we have not only been able to highlight but also share knowledge of with our members and with our client partners for the benefit of their employees via our Proactive Health Gateway service."

"As part of our activities for 2017, we continue to seek the best in health tech and encourage developers, innovators and designers to enter this year's AXA PPP Health Tech & You Awards programme."

There are six categories for the Health Tech & You Awards programme 2017. Each has a distinct focus from identifying health tech that can support specific needs in society, having the most positive impact for health care providers and identifying individual innovators and organisations that are pioneers within the health technology for the benefit of individuals. Each of the six categories has its own judging and entry approach.  To enter, please visit http://www.healthtechandyou.com.  The closing date is Monday 16^th January 2017.

• The Trending Award 
• The Future Award 
• AXA PPP Health Tech & You Challenge 
• The Health & Care Professional's Choice 
• The Health Tech & Age Award 
• The Wow! Award 
  

AXA PPP Health Tech & You will be showcasing this year's finalists and winners at a dedicated exhibition at the Design Museum from the 25th April to 8th May 2017, offering visitors the chance to see and interact with the latest in health tech and innovation.

Notes to Editors 

About the research 

Survey by YouGov 

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc.  Total sample size was 2,094 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 29-30 November, 2016. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

About AXA PPP Health Tech & You Awards 2017 

There are six categories for the Health Tech & You Awards 2017. Each has a distinct focus from identifying health tech that can support specific needs in society, having the most positive impact for health care providers and identifying individual champions, innovators and organisations that are leading the health technology revolution for the benefit of consumers. Each of the six categories has their own judging and entry approach.  The deadline for entries is Monday 16 January, 2017.

About AXA PPP healthcare 

AXA PPP healthcare - one of the largest and most experienced private medical insurance providers in the UK - has been helping people to access healthcare services since 1940. Today it forms the UK healthcare arm of AXA and provides cover for medical and dental care for individuals and employers, and employee wellbeing, counselling, occupational health and rehabilitation services through its specialist Health Services division.

AXA PPP healthcare has been named the Best Healthcare Provider for three years running in the Your Money Awards and, in June 2015, was awarded the prestigious accolade of European Large Contact Centre of the Year at the 2015 European Contact Centre & Customer Service Awards, followed in September 2015 by the Best Customer Experience accolade in the Large Contact Centre category of the UK Customer Experience Awards 2015.

References 

1. Hänsel, K., Wilde, N., Haddadi, H. and Alomainy, A. (2015) 'Challenges with Current Wearable Technology in Monitoring Health Data and Providing Positive Behavioural Support', MOBIHEALTH'15 Proceedings of the 5th EAI International Conference on Wireless Mobile Communication and Healthcare, pp. 158-161. http://www.eecs.qmul.ac.uk/~hamed/papers/mobi_health.pdf

For further information on the State of the Nation Survey or the AXA PPP Health Tech & You programme please contact:
Nina Bass - Trio Health on +44-(0)207-947-9635- [email protected]
Chloe Nichols - Trio Health on +44-(0)207-947-9632 - [email protected]

Visit the AXA PPP Health Tech & You website http://www.healthtechandyou.com
Follow us on Twitter @healthtechyou #HealthTechAwards
 

SOURCE AXA PPP Health Tech & You