Leading occupational physiotherapy provider Physio Med has been reappointed by the John Lewis Partnership to continue the fight against sickness absence, having helped the retail giant save £25m and 260,000 working days in the last five years.
The John Lewis Partnership has been a pioneer of employee health and wellbeing services, introducing free in-house medical services to all its Partners in 1929, some 19 years before the NHS was established. The Partnership began working with Physio Med in 2013.
Since 2015, Physio Med has helped improve productivity levels among Partners by 26.5% by reducing the time they wait for physiotherapy treatment via the NHS. The Physio Med service provides Partners with timely access to physiotherapy services – including Physio Med’s award-winning PAL (Physiotherapy Services Line), which provides fast access to advice and treatment. This helps Partners keep fit for work, enabling them to recover quickly and safely if they suffer an injury, and improve their wellbeing. It also helps the Partnership reduce the incidence and duration of musculoskeletal injuries, which in turn reduces absenteeism rates.
Nick Davison, Head of Partnership Health Services at the John Lewis Partnership, said: “Since we began working with Physio Med, we’ve been delighted with the results the service has delivered and the fact that it has helped so many of our Partners return to work quickly and reduced their pain so significantly, enabling them to continue providing first-class service to our customers, is fantastic.
“Our Partners are the cornerstone of the Partnership so it’s imperative that we invest in their health and wellbeing so they can be at their best.
“Investing in early clinical intervention, such as the physiotherapy provision, is particularly important as our research has shown the potential cost of rising absenteeism due to musculoskeletal conditions.”
Phil Clayton, Managing Director of Physio Med, said: “We’re thrilled to be continuing to help the John Lewis Partnership reduce absenteeism rates among its Partners. Sickness absence and presenteeism is one of the biggest challenges facing employers and the Partnership has been a leading light in providing solutions for its Partners.
“Since 2015, we’ve received more than 8,000 referrals from its Partners who were either absent from work or at work in pain and operating at reduced productivity levels. It is rewarding to know that 95% of those Partners have been successfully rehabilitated back into work – a figure that highlights the valuable role that early physiotherapy intervention can play in an effective occupational health provision.
“The fact that we’ve now worked with the Partnership - one of the UK’s biggest household names - for so long is a source of great pride for us at Physio Med.”
Following its reappointment, Physio Med will now continue to provide the John Lewis Partnership with its award-winning physiotherapy services until 2022.
