How will your organization support social determinants of health?
Potential tactics to improve social well-being
- Work with vendor partners to view existing data with a social determinant of health lens (employee surveys, employee assistance program, 401k, health claims, etc.).
- Identify employee social needs through validated tools and/or employee focus groups.
- Create a supportive, caring, and inclusive workplace culture that meets the needs of a diverse workforce. Approach decision-making with a health equity and inclusion lens by asking tough questions and examining the distribution of power, money, and resources as well as who is left out of decision-making within the workplace.
- Focus on whole person well-being by taking a health in all policies approach that ensures everyone has an equitable opportunity for optimal well-being and protection against safety and health hazards.
- Support economic security by offering living wages that allow employees to live a modest yet adequate standard of living.
- Enhance employee quality of life by providing resources, benefits, and management training to mitigate workplace psychological stress and provide mental well-being supports,. Also consider offering healthy food choices and caregiver support. You can also create social cohesion through resource groups, on-the-job training opportunities, and financial security.
- Provide access to affordable health care coverage to all members of the workforce, including features such as telehealth, plan choice, and use of a value-based benefit design (alignment of employee cost-sharing with high-value services) to close the health equity gap.
- Put in place robust environmental, social, and governance criteria (ESG) as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I), and anti-racism strategies.