Unlocking Data to Analyze, Benchmark and Diagnose Absence Drivers, Culture and Impacts on Outcomes

The objective of the session is to communicate the opportunity employers have to better understand the costs, utilization patterns, potential balance sheet implications, and culture associated with their absence programs and to convey how to use quantitative and qualitative information to help decrease and control the impact absence has on an organization.

Most employers agree that they have challenges related to absence but most fail to dedicate the time to fully diagnose their issues or chart paths toward improvement. Our session will focus on several of the Children’s Hospital Association member hospitals where work has been completed to identify absence costs, utilization patterns, balance sheet liability, and cultural issues. The hospitals will discuss measured utilization costs, accrual liability, employee absence culture, absence program policy design and administrative processes associated with absence programs.

The findings from these studies were used to set baseline for measurement, to benchmark plans and utilization, to modify program plan designs, to improve program administration, to develop new ways to track information, to develop internal training resources, to optimize plan expense and minimize plan liability. Hospitals have experienced cost control, decrease in utilization, shorter absence durations, reduction in suspected abuse and increased knowledge about how absence is impacting their organizations.

• Thomas Cullen, Regional Practice Leader, Trion Group, a March & McLennan Agency
• Phil Lacey, Absence Health & Productivity Practice Leader, Trion Group, a March & McLennan Agency
• Kimberly Mashburn, National Accounts Practice Lead, The Hartford
• Beth Rohlfing, Senior Director, Total Rewards & Human Resources Technology, Children’s Hospital Association
• David Spizman, Vice President, Children’s Hospital Association