How Seattle Children's Hospital prioritizes the health of its workers

For hospital employees, staying physically and mentally healthy can be a challenge. Access to a combination of digital and in-person care can help. 

Healthcare employees, especially those in a hospital setting, often face long shifts, high stress situations, physical demands and constant exposure to illness, making the need for regular self care — including wellness checks and behavioral health access — essential. But staff shortages, responsibilities in and out of work and weeks-long waits for an appointment can make even an annual physical hard to fit in. Because of that, quick and easy access to these resources is crucial.

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For more than a decade, Seattle Children's Hospital (SCH) has been partnered with advanced primary care company Apree Health, which provides primary and behavioral health offerings, life coaching and pharmacy services to employees and their dependents. Mental health offerings are especially important for healthcare workers, 86% of whom reported anxiety and 76% of whom reported exhaustion and burnout in a recent report from the American Hospital Association. 

"When you're talking about sessions that a behavioral health clinician can have that are tied to a primary care provider with how they co-manage disease and infirmity and also well-being, those things become very needed for a high-stress environment like healthcare workers [face]," says Dr. Kevin Wang, chief medical officer at advanced primary care company Apree Health. "Their [efforts] can then go towards their patients because we've taken care of them."

Virtual appointments on Apree's app or in-person appointments are available the same or next day with general practitioners at Apree's nearby clinic — one of many nationwide — allowing members to seek treatment quickly for immediate, ongoing or preventative needs. The app also gives patients access to 24/7 chat communication with a provider team who has access to all of their medical records on the secure Apree platform. 

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This consolidation of mental and physical health information allows all involved medical professionals to communicate for a more personalized, efficient version of care, and helps prevent unnecessary trips to urgent care or the ER, says Dr. Wang. Apree's Net Promoter Score, which measures customer satisfaction and loyalty, is 86 — more than double the average for the healthcare industry. 

"Having a care team that knows you, having that ongoing relationship — those are things that add intrinsic value," Dr. Wang says. "Oftentimes that becomes a big focus when we talk to our clients: The quality of the care they receive is just as important as satisfaction and cost savings." 

Convenient access to preventative care improves employees' long-term health outcomes as well, leading to better quality of life and cost savings for them as well as their employers. Apree members have access to important routine care such as cancer screenings and cardio, blood pressure and blood sugar checks — all of which can help avoid severe chronic conditions. 

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By offering a high-quality, comprehensive care benefit to employees, employers increase appreciation and retention among their employees, and nowhere is this more important than with frontline healthcare workers. 

"When employees are happy, they stay longer," says Dr. Wang. "Employers get more productivity, and you get a really good symbiotic flow that applies to the whole population."