Behavioral Risk in the Workplace: Behavioral Risk Management Continues to be an Important Best Practice Area for Employers

SAN DIEGO, June 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Behavioral Risk Management is an important best practice area for employers. This is the strong message from a survey conducted by the Disability Management Employer Coalition (DMEC) that examined employer strategies and effectiveness in Behavioral Risk Management.

Additionally, survey results show that Behavioral Risk Management may be moving beyond an emerging focus area to one that is showing signs of being ingrained in how employers think. Given the changes that have occurred in the last two years, practical applications in the field of behavioral risk are set to be supported and propelled by scientific research and technological advances.

Marcia Carruthers, CPDM, CEO and President of DMEC, says, "These results are very encouraging and DMEC is proud to be the thought leader in this area. Given the momentum generated by all three key stakeholders, I am confident that this best practice area will prove to be a breakthrough in claims, performance and productivity advancement in the coming years."

Employers report an increase in their usage (since 2006) of the following best practice areas:

-- Application of depression screenings increased significantly to 35% of respondents;

-- Use of a mental health professional (MHP) for disciplinary programs;

-- Use of Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) on disability management committees.

Behavioral Risk Management is a term that was coined by DMEC in 2006 to describe a process by which employers could effectively assess, prevent and control losses within their organizations caused by behavioral, psychosocial, or mental health issues. The survey was conducted in cooperation with Partnership for Workplace Mental Health, a program of the American Psychiatric Foundation.

  The full report can be downloaded from the DMEC website at http://www.dmec.org/.

  About DMEC

The Disability Management Employer Coalition (DMEC) is a non-profit organization that provides educational resources to employers in the areas of disability, absence, health, and productivity. The primary goal of DMEC is to assist employers in developing cost-saving programs, encouraging responsive market products, and returning employees to productive employment. Visit http://www.dmec.org/ for more information about educational publications and events.

CONTACT: John Jordan of Principor Communications for Disability Management Employer Coalition, +1-202-595-9008, x63, jjordan@principor.com

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