Nice Moments with Metropolitan Center for Independent Living

Solving employees’ problems in a way that benefits the organization, as a whole, can be a challenge. Fortunately, Metropolitan Center for Independent Living (MCIL) is always looking for innovative solutions–by issuing annual surveys, meeting with each individual employee to check in and address what matters most to them, and creating strategic plans of action.

When it comes to their employees’ health, MCIL prioritizes effectiveness, convenience, and cost–so they were happy to discover that Nice’s virtual and in-home services keep employees healthy while also reducing costs and claims on their company healthcare plan. Read on to learn more about how MCIL meets their employees where they are and continues to create one of the best places to work.

How do you keep your employees happy and healthy? 

Metropolitan Center for Independent Living (MCIL) employees are the core of our business, and it’s important that we take care of them. We prioritize finding creative and innovative solutions to meet our employees where they’re at and meet their needs. How do we do this? We conduct an annual survey to determine what is most important and highest priority for our workforce. We also meet individually with each employee on an annual basis to check in, and maintain our open door policy. We ask questions and actively listen to their answers about what matters and what areas they’re finding challenging. We take that feedback and create change to solve the issues and meet the needs they identify. Based on the collected feedback, we create actionable items. 

What makes a virtual healthcare benefit stand out? 

I’m sure it’s no surprise that we get inundated with virtual care solutions, and it can honestly be overwhelming. However, MCIL’s priority checklist includes convenience, effectiveness, and cost. Our employees have really benefited from virtual care during the pandemic and have stated that they’re having their healthcare needs met–without having to leave their homes. This has truly been a huge benefit. But not only is the care available, the workforce has confirmed that the providers they’ve seen and spoken to virtually are competent and know what they’re talking about–meaning the employees' issues have generally been resolved effectively through virtual means. These types of experiences are priceless.

Why did you choose to work with Nice Healthcare? What made Nice Healthcare stand out? 

MCIL knew that we had to find a solution that could answer the needs of our employees and benefit the organization as a whole–all while letting us control costs and claims on our healthcare plan. What stood out about Nice Healthcare is that they not only provide virtual options, but they also make home visits and on-site office visits for employees who are in need of in-person care. The option for employees to still see someone in person reduced a lot of the anxiety for people. Some employees can’t fully understand or see the care needed via remote methods, but we found a happy medium with Nice. Once they try it, they’re all hooked. It’s a cost effective option for both employees and our organization, with huge benefits in terms of convenience of care and employee well-being.

What was a rewarding moment for you when it comes to your workforce’s health? 

We are proud to say that there have been no reported cases of COVID spread within our organization due to exposure at work. We have worked hard to protect our employees and ensure proper safety protocols. Our employees have risen to the challenge and have continued to protect each other and our work community as well. It takes a village, and we did it. 

What has been a highlight about working with Nice? 

Our journey with Nice has been memorable, to say the least. Being able to provide our employees accessible healthcare, in a timely manner, at no cost to them has to be the highlight for MCIL. It's such a convenience for those things that typically result in an urgent care visit–we’ve had employees be able to get diagnosed and treated right in their homes for things like strep throat, ear infections, back pain, and care for diabetes. The list is endless. Every time an employee tells us about their Nice Healthcare experience, it's followed by, “Please don’t get rid of it. It's such an amazing benefit.” We are deeply grateful that we’ve been able to provide employees with such a convenient and effective benefit that they find true value in and would hate to lose.

The partnership between Nice Healthcare and MCIL was made possible by USI Insurance Services one of Minnesota’s top employee benefits brokerages. Nice is highly selective about the brokers we choose to partner with, only working with those who share our core values and desire to transform the local and national healthcare landscape.

A happy, healthy employee is a productive, loyal employee–and that’s something everyone in your organization can get excited about. Learn more about how to keep your employees healthy while lowering healthcare costs and boosting the bottom line for your organization by reading our white paper on enhancing your employee benefits package.

And you can learn more about Nice’s comprehensive virtual and in-home healthcare services by visiting our employer page.