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Non-profit association in Midwest with 1,000 employees located in satellite offices across country.
The company handled disability leaves in-house before turning over its short-term disability (STD)
and Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leaves over to Work & Well.
An employee was out on pregnancy leave. When she was due to return, Work & Well received a request
from the employee’s OB physician for another three months of leave time.
Our case manager contacted the employee. She stated she had severe post-partum depression but would
not follow her OB physician’s advice and seek psychological counseling. Over the course of several
conversations, the case manager became increasingly concerned by the employee’s numerous comments
about hurting the baby.
Work & Well denied the leave extension request because the condition
was psychological and needed to be treated by a psychologist
or psychiatrist if pay was to continue. The case manager
explained this to the employee, who very reluctantly made
an appointment with a psychologist and needed to be treated.
After her first appointment, the employee called the nurse to thank her for forcing the issue and
making her seek the help she needed. The employee subsequently returned to work within three weeks
of her appointment with the psychologist.
The employer saved nine weeks of benefit costs, in addition to the indirect costs of overtime,
temporary employees, department morale, etc. More importantly, the employee received the appropriate
treatment and the employer had a healthier, happier employee.
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