8th July 2005
The UK’s leading disability insurer, UnumProvident, has been awarded first prize in the British Insurance Award’s category for excellence in Rehabilitation.
The Award, which was presented in a ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall on the evening of London’s Olympic bid victory, recognises the success of the insurer’s Early Intervention Programme – a revolutionary approach whereby return-to-work outcomes are maximised by effective absence management techniques.
Joy Reymond, Head of Rehabilitation Services for UnumProvident, said:
We are incredibly proud to receive this accolade for our Rehabilitation work and the outcomes we have achieved through early intervention. Moreover, we are thrilled that others in the insurance industry are starting to see the value of what we do.
Although early intervention is a recognised concept, it is not commonly practiced in the workplace. We identified the need for a bespoke absence management process, which would be simple to administer as well as enable the employer to provide as much information, as soon as possible, about absent employee or employees. In collaboration with our National Accounts Team, we devised a unique process that maximises the proven benefits of early intervention in absence management cases and is now utilised by more than 250 clients.
During 2004 UnumProvident’s Rehabilitation Team successfully helped more than 500 employees return to work following illness or injury. This year the figure is expected to exceed 700.
Joanne Hindle, Corporate Services Director, added:
Our Rehabilitation team’s approach in helping claimants return to work after a period of ill health or disability is truly innovative and achieves positive outcomes for both the employer and the employee. Early intervention is the single most important measure against long term benefit dependence.
UnumProvident was also a finalist in the Corporate and Social Responsibility Project of the Year category for its work in launching and funding New Beginnings - a unique partnership which brings together stakeholders from both private and not-for-profit sectors, as well as some of the major disability agencies, with the goal of improving the long-term return-to-work outcomes for disabled people in the UK.
ENDS