Thanks to its company-wide wellbeing initiatives, which include Tai chi sessions, individually tailored mental health support, wellbeing packs and physical and mindful rewards, community services healthcare provider, Connect Health, has received the ‘Maintaining Excellence’ accolade from North East Better Health at Work (BHAW), for the second year in a row.
The ‘Maintaining Excellence’ accreditation is only presented to North East companies that can demonstrate a consistent and evolving health and wellbeing strategy for their workforce and who have been engaged with the Award for long enough to have achieved a pass at all levels, via the completion of a criteria document, portfolio and full workplace assessment.
Judges noted how “Connect Health has provided an excellent response to the pandemic where the safety of staff and clients are forefront in the organisation’s objectives”. As a result of the award win, the company can now mentor other regional businesses.
The North East Better Health at Work Award, a regional partnership between the TUC, 11 North East local authorities and the NHS, is delivered by Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust in North Tyneside.
Maureen Turner, Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Health Improvement Practitioner Specialist for Workplaces, said:
Although 2021 was somewhat of a challenging year, Connect Health has delivered some good campaigns and have ensured the health, wellbeing and safety of their staff and clients throughout.
It was great to see that the organisation’s internal Covid-19 MSK Risk Stratification tool has been published in the BMJ (British Medical Journal) and has also been shared as an area of good practice with other patient led services across the UK.
Connect Health also provides a wealth of information, advice and bespoke exercises for staff to undertake in order to alleviate the impact that sedentary behaviours and home working can have on health and wellbeing and to ensure MSK (Musculoskeletal) issues are addressed. The assessor also thought the ‘Flippin Pain’ and Brain Bus excellent initiates to further encourage physical activity with the addition of providing educational sessions to the public and raising a large sum of money for charity, well done to all involved!
Headquartered from North Tyneside’s Quorum business park, the national company has 850 employees across the UK and serves over 375,000 NHS patients. It operates specialist services in mental health, rehabilitation, physiotherapy and much more and is recognised as an innovator in the industry, thanks to leading public health campaign, Flippin’ Pain, physiotherapy tool, PhysioNow and its learning arm, The Academy.
Clive Liggett, Director of People and Internal Communications at Connect Health, added:
Our focus is on the physical and mental wellness of our teams. We want Connect Health to be a great place to work and so improving employee wellbeing through listening and feedback, is just one way we try to do this. Another way is by ensuring our colleagues feel supported and that managers have the training they need to provide that support.
As a mentor, we have already built a strong relationship with another organisation; they will benefit from our expertise in the area, while being able to use our tried and tested resources.
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