Press Release

ICARE and Global Health Metrics Pioneer Health Risk Assessment Tool for Addiction Awareness

Issued by International Center for Addiction and Recovery Education [ICARE]

May 13, 2021

Employers Lower Insurance Costs with Industry-First Employee Mental Wellbeing Checkup

 Orlando, FL and Cleveland, OH  -  The International Center for Addiction and Recovery Education (ICARE) and Global Health Metrics LLC (GHM) announce the Healthy Self Checkup, a comprehensive addiction risk assessment tool to measure and improve employee mental fitness levels and reduce employer insurance costs. The demand for the assessment was triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent rise of substance misuse in the workplace, which costs the US economy over $740B annually.

The first of its kind, the Healthy Self Checkup allows employers to measure the level of risk their employee base poses by revealing their propensity to engage in risky and potentially unhealthy behaviors of alcohol and substance misuse. Data collected from employee responses, which is totally confidential, is used to create an aggregate snapshot of the company's overall risk level. This measurement helps determine the cost of benefits the company will pay to insure its employees. The lower the risk, the lower the cost.  

Until now, clinical assessments used in the addiction field have measured a person's severity of substance misuse in order to determine the level of treatment needed such as detoxification, medication assisted, inpatient or outpatient care.                      

"My vision was to create an assessment to first enhance self-awareness about personal use of substances to cope with pressure and stress, and second, to promote reflection about personal resilience and mental wellbeing needed to take steps to change coping patterns," notes ICARE Founder and President, Dr. Jean LaCour. "I gave up after several attempts to write my own assessment for use by our certified professional recovery coaches, counselors, and HR professionals. Shortly thereafter, ICARE Vice President and Executive Director, Cheryl Brown Merriwether, met GHM's Chief Operating Officer, Greg Davis, who was intrigued by the idea of adapting their proven health risk assessment to create a professional addiction risk assessment with us."

"GHM is honored to work with ICARE to develop this innovative tool to address substance misuse/addiction, one of the major health risks facing our society today," says Davis.
The Healthy Self Checkup consists of 24 questions divided into six categories based upon elements of wellbeing. The assessment reveals the employee's readiness to change behaviors.  The online, self-administered checkup is offered annually during open enrollment to employees who may elect to take it several times during the year to support their own growth and resilience. It takes less than 15 minutes to complete. The assessment is encouraged by employers, but not mandated.

Results are tabulated instantly and provided to the employee. Employers periodically receive anonymous aggregated data. Armed with this data, companies are able to offer customized wellness programs to reduce unhealthy behaviors, improve wellbeing and lower the cost of employee benefits. The interactive electronic assessment tool is a powerful way for employers to create a healthier, more productive workforce and save money on escalating insurance costs.

Request a demo of the Healthy Self Checkup here.

About Global Health Metrics LLC

Global Health Metrics LLC is a health data science company comprised of a team of medical doctors, biostatisticians, and developers who have come together to create the most scientifically rigorous health risk assessment on the market. Continuing work undertaken by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the 1970s and the Carter Center of Emory University in 1986, the company's mission is to make available to patients, health providers, health organizations, state and local governments, service groups, business and industry the best in the science and technology of health risk assessments.

Global Health Metrics' software introduces the concept of the "risk age" and "target age", giving patients a goal of what they can do to improve their health and how they can get there using statistics of mortality risks for people in their age group with their health choices. To learn more contact web-contact@globalhealthmetrics.com.

About International Center for Addiction and Recovery Education (ICARE)

The International Center for Addiction & Recovery Education (ICARE) is a Center of Excellence for bringing together people and processes to overcome the unprecedented societal challenges of addiction. The culmination of 25+ years of work in the field of recovery and addiction, ICARE is deeply rooted in the principles of Resilience and Emotional Sobriety. ICARE is committed to raising the awareness of addiction in our culture and helping individuals live their best lives, free from problematic behaviors and past stigma.  

ICARE was founded in 2020 during COVID 19 as a response to the surge in substance misuse occurring during this devastating time in history. The brainchild of Dr. Jean LaCour, ICARE is the parent organization to a trio of affiliated divisions including: NET Training Institute (NTI), the International Association for Professional Recovery Coaches (IAPRC), and Strategic Sobriety  Workforce Solutions. Together these three entities provide credentialed training programs to solve the growing global problem of addiction in individuals, families, communities, and the workforce. For more information visit www.ICARE-Aware.org. 

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