Remote health service Help@hand app downloads increased 88% during the period of April to June 2020
Unum has reported that usage of its digital health service Help@Hand increased 400% during the lockdown period (compared to November 2019 to March 2020) - more than 2220 consultations were booked between April and June 2020 and the app has reached 165,000 employees whose partners and children can also use it.
Since launching last year, almost 3,000 appointments have been booked using the service provided by Square Health - and around 60% were for the virtual GP service.
It offers four other services, including an employee assistance programme (EAP) from LifeWorks, second medical opinion as well as mental health and physiotherapy support.
According to Unum, Help@hand GPs aim to speak to customers within two hours of an appointment being requested through the app, 365 days per year. They can arrange delivery of private prescriptions and medication (for an additional fee) directly to the customer.
During the height of lockdown, nearly three-quarters of cases referred to Help@hand were resolved without requiring further consultation or referral, the group risk provider said.
‘Phenomenal'
Peter O'Donnell, CEO of Unum UK said: "I'm absolutely delighted that Help@hand is going from strength to strength, demand is continuing to grow and that so many people are using the services. 165,000 employees covered is a phenomenal number, and we're fully expecting this number to keep rising as the weeks go on.
"Our priority remains to provide quality services that are relevant, easy to access, and offer vital support to employees and their families when needed. We're continuing to listen to our customers and are using that feedback to shape our future development plans - aspiring towards a fully integrated and holistic proposition that provides valuable services to employees and supports the workforce needs of employers.
"As we assess the impact of Covid-19 for healthcare, we are absolutely committed to continuing to innovate, evolve and enhance Help@hand to ensure we remain agile and responsive to the changing needs of our customers and the market."
