Studio Romantic/Doctor discussing treatment
By TJ Farnsworth
Founder, CEO, Inception Fertility
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Medical treatments can disrupt a person's emotional and mental well-being. The fear of the unknown, concerns about test results, financial accessibility to care, and medication side effects can amplify an already stressful situation.
The same can be said for health care providers treating patients. From physicians to nurses and office staff, health care workers at any level and in any field of medicine are prone to occupational stress resulting from a patient's own stress, trauma, and loss.
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To reach optimal patient outcomes, health care leaders should be committed to both the patient and employee experiences. Addressing the mental toll of health care — and providing supportive resources — can help an organization meet its patient satisfaction goals.
How Stress Impacts Fertility Care
Like most medical conditions, fertility care involves a constant stream of doctor visits, anticipated test results, and fluctuating financial costs. Considered a silent struggle, aspiring parents go about their daily lives on the outside while battling feelings of shame and guilt on the inside. These tangible and intangible factors can lead to depression, anxiety, and stress.
These aren't insignificant levels of stress, either. A study in Reproductive Biomedicine found that infertility stress was comparable to that of the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.Another study found that 76% of women undergoing fertility treatment scored in the clinical range for anxiety.
What we don't know with certainty is whether stress impacts fertility. But what we do know is that infertility causes stress. That stress increases when a patient has a failed cycle, which can be so impactful they may give up on their family-building journey.
How Can Health Care Leaders Support Patients?
Address the financial burden of care immediately: After a patient is given a treatment plan, an initial thought can be "How am I going to pay for this?" especially if they are non- or underinsured. If you're in an area of medicine that is typically underinsured, form relationships with financial providers who can help your patients manage their medical costs. And immediately connect patients with financial counselors who can help them navigate the costs of their care.
Set up virtual events with mental health experts: Schedule regular virtual events with mental health professionals who specialize in your area of medicine and can address patients' top emotional and mental concerns. This added service demonstrates your commitment to the patient's experience.
Improve patient communication: Patients want their information quickly, and having answers can help relieve them of unnecessary anxiety. Consider launching an exclusive digital platform, like an app, where patients can access test results, modify or be reminded of appointments, connect with their care teams, and access health and wellness resources specific to their treatment. Efficient communication leaves little room for misinterpretation and can reduce patient stress.
Appoint someone in charge of mental health: Consider onboarding a mental health professional who can provide support to both patients and employees. In 2022, Inception added a new role of Chief Compassion Officer, hiring a globally recognized leader in mental health to support both our patients and our family members.
Offer ancillary services: Acupuncture and yoga are proven tools to help patients destress. Our fertility practices offer these ancillary services to aspiring parents to help them manage the stress, anxiety, depression, and physical pain they may experience from fertility care.
The Mental Health of Employees
It was never more clear that health care workers face enormous stress levels than during the COVID-19 pandemic. But we don't need a global health threat to understand that medical occupational stress can impact performance, efficiency, and patient outcomes. And in fertility care, that's understandable, as our care teams are so emotionally invested in each patient's journey.
Health care workers are also known to put the well-being of their patients before themselves. As a health care leader, it's your responsibility to ensure your team gets the support they need to be their best selves for their patients.
The American Psychological Associations' 2022 Work and Well-being Survey found that 81% of respondents are seeking companies that support mental health programs for their employees. The benefits of supporting employee mental health go beyond hiring and retaining talent.
Fostering an empowering environment that promotes wellness initiatives demonstrates to employees that their well-being is essential to the organization. This can help improve employee morale and have a trickle-down effect on patients, who in turn get the best, most caring service.
A Wellness Framework
Organizations in any industry, especially health care, should consider developing a wellness framework to address employee mental health to include:
- Employee assistance programs that give team members and their families access to mental health support services, such as free counseling sessions and virtual events led by mental health experts. This initiative has been well-received by our team members.
- Comprehensive health benefits that include resources for quality mental health care services and treatments
- Robust internal communications so that all members of an organization feel like they're on the same team working for the same cause
- Dedicated time to celebrate team members' roles and their accomplishments. Through Employee Experience Week, we celebrate the achievements of our team members, recognize their talents and what they bring to the company (i.e., Embryology Day), and schedule fun events and activities where we can connect on a level outside of everyday work. We also celebrate our team members on a regular basis and throughout the company.
- DEI efforts that celebrate different perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds. This type of support can help fuel a compassionate workplace where employees feel safe, heard, and valued.
At Inception, we have seen incredible results from our own efforts to improve mental health and wellness initiatives. And it's not just us; research has shown a direct correlation between the employee experience and the patient experience. If you genuinely want your patients to walk away from their medical experiences with the most outstanding level of satisfaction, look at your team members and patients with a 360-degree lens that includes their mental and emotional well-being.
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