In an insightful interview with CanadianSME Small Business Magazine, David Bassin, Senior Vice President – Operations at TELUS Health, unveiled the strategic vision propelling the company into the retirement and pension management space, intricately woven into its broader mission to transform healthcare experiences. David emphasized that financial wellbeing is an integral component of overall health, highlighting TELUS Health’s dedication to creating a holistic approach to employee wellbeing by integrating physical, mental, and financial health services. With over 50 years of experience in benefits administration and a deep commitment to innovation, underscored by recognition as an ‘Overall Leader’ in next-generation benefits administration by NelsonHall, TELUS Health is at the forefront of redefining health and wellness in the workplace. The company’s future-focused strategy, leveraging AI and digital tools, aims to streamline benefits administration and enhance user experiences, underscoring a unified platform for health that supports individuals through all life’s critical moments. This vision not only strengthens TELUS Health’s leadership in the healthcare industry but also promises to pioneer a future where technology and wellbeing converge for the betterment of employees across North America.
David is a results-oriented senior executive with more than two decades of experience driving results in software, strategy, finance, corporate development, M&A, transformation, general management and operations.
As Senior Vice-president of Operations at TELUS Health, David leads the operations delivery of solutions for employers and clinicians and healthcare professionals across a team of 4,000 team members. With a consistent customers-first focus, David takes a collaborative approach in leveraging the breadth of TELUS Health offerings to solve his clients’ toughest challenges.
David holds an MBA from Ivey Business School at Western University, and an Honours Bachelor of Science in Information Systems from the University of Toronto. David also actively participates in both corporate and not-for-profit boards.
David, can you share the strategic vision behind TELUS Health venturing into retirement and pension management space, and how it aligns with your overall mission in healthcare?
The vision of TELUS Health is to reimagine the way health is delivered and experienced. Our work in health and welfare, retirement and benefits administration furthers that vision within employer-provided healthcare, where financial wellbeing for employees is just as important as their physical and mental wellbeing. Our experience has found that financial wellbeing is about more than simply having money in the bank but rather, it means that employees feel in control of their finances, are able to handle a financial setback, and are on track to achieve their life goals.
We’re no newcomer to the space, leveraging over 50 years of experience in retirement and benefits administration, along with 15 years of direct expertise in healthcare. The services offered by TELUS Health are specifically designed to create better participant interaction and utilization for our clients, helping their employees achieve a more secure financial future during retirement, and contribute to a more holistic sense of health and wellbeing.
The NelsonHall ranking is a significant accolade. How does this recognition as an ‘Overall Leader’ in next-generation benefits administration influence TELUS Health’s approach towards innovation and service improvement?
Being named once again as an Overall Leader by NelsonHall not only acknowledges the dedication of our team at TELUS Health, but also reinforces our commitment to continuously improving our services. The NEAT analysis is a significant external endorsement from a trusted third-party organization and is further proof of our consistent record of success, and pushes us to ensure that our clients continue to receive industry-leading benefits administration services.
With TELUS Health’s recent achievements, what are the key initiatives or technologies you’re implementing to maintain and enhance your leadership position in the healthcare industry?
With our world-leading network and innovative health technology combined with our foundation in social purpose, TELUS Health is building the healthiest workplaces and communities on the planet. Providing employers with the latest services across the full spectrum of physical, mental and financial health allows them to support their employees all over the world with personalized experiences so they can proactively manage their own health and wellbeing. For us, this unified approach is crucial to empowering people at the most critical moments in their lives: when a child arrives, buying a house, starting a pension plan, if a partner gets ill, during a crisis, and retirement.
In practice, this means integrating our benefits offerings for physical, mental and financial health into a single platform, with products designed to fit all client needs, scaling to complex implementations and plan administration. We are also committed to the continuous development of platform and product innovations for optimum digitalization – including the use of AI-driven proprietary chatbots and similar tools – that reflect a deep understanding of current market needs. But most importantly, we believe in a holistic approach for employers, offering total health and wellbeing solutions for their workforces, that combine benefits administration, Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) and absence management.
Given TELUS Health’s holistic approach to employee well-being, could you elaborate on how integrating physical, mental, and financial health services into a single platform benefits employers and their workforce?
We believe that by prioritizing employee wellbeing, organizations across North America will succeed in increasing morale and decreasing stress in the workforce. This will contribute to improved overall productivity and reduced labor expenses in the long term.
Our integrated approach also means that our clients have access to our global team of experts, possessing extensive knowledge across the physical, mental and financial health and wellbeing spectrum. We are leveraging the power of technology to continue giving employers the tools they need to keep their workforce healthy, productive and engaged.
Looking towards the future, what upcoming projects or innovations at TELUS Health should clients and the healthcare industry anticipate, especially in the context of leveraging AI and digital tools for health and benefits administration?
Just as we have done in the past, our priority remains focused on improving access to health support and personalizing the user experience. We will continue to leverage AI technology to streamline the benefits administration process so that AI can handle routine information collection processes, like change of addresses and adjustments in beneficiaries, plus answer frequently asked questions, while giving human case managers and care navigators more time to thoughtfully address more complex situations where human-to-human contact is key. That way, we can help ensure that the expertise of those professionals is focused on the most impactful outcome.
