Supporting the health needs of women and their families

April 24, 2023

Video

Supporting the unique health needs of women

Video transcript

A white ribbon with three stripes winds across a blue background, turning it white. Inspirational string and piano music plays softly. A woman with glasses and wavy dark hair speaks before a bright white screen and a wooden partition. A blue banner in the lower left shows the woman's name and attribution in white text.

ONSCREEN TEXT:        Dr. Lisa Saul
Chief Medical Officer at UnitedHealthcare

DR. SAUL: Women tend to put themselves pretty far down on their list of things to do, if there's a spouse, if there is a significant other, children. My dog had surgery last week. I mean, there are things that come way above the list before me and before we take care of ourselves.

White text appears over a blue-tinted photo of two parents with two young children.

ONSCREEN TEXT:        According to UnitedHealthcare claims data, women are less likely than men to get continued care once they have a chronic condition.

Now a woman in a red blazer speaks by the screen. White text in the blue banner appears below her.

ONSCREEN TEXT:        Dr. Rhonda Randall, Chief Medical Officer at UnitedHealthcare

DR. RANDALL: We can infer from what we're seeing in that claims data, maybe put the caregiving ahead and give their own health a back burner when it comes to managing a chronic condition in order for the family to remain healthy. Nine times out of 10, the woman in that family needs to be the healthiest person in the house to be able to keep everyone else on track in terms of their health journey and their health goals.

A family with two parents and one young child snuggles on a couch. They smile at one another. Over another blue-tinted family photo, white text appears.

ONSCREEN TEXT:        According to the National Institutes of Health, women in the United States make approximately 80% of the health care decisions for their families.

Now, on a panel, Dr. Randall turns to Dr. Saul and three other speakers seated between them. The view zooms out to show the screen in full, which bears the UnitedHealthcare logo—a blue letter U with the right arm split into three stripes—and name in blue text.

DR. RANDALL: Jess, you speak to hundreds of employers and decision makers around benefits. What are you hearing from your customers as far as what they're doing around caregiving?

Now a blonde woman in a red dress speaks. White text appears in a blue banner beneath her:

ONSCREEN TEXT: Jessica Paik CEO of National Accounts at UnitedHealthcare Employer & Individual

JESSICA PAIK: Something that's increasing a lot is the caregiver navigation. They know their employees need caregivers, but how do they find them? And then parental journey support— so, employers offering specific support around just how to be a parent. Oh, and backup child care is also something that's increased a lot. We offer all of our clients our programs we've built within UHC, and then partnerships.

Now a younger woman leans on the handles of an elderly woman's wheelchair. They smile at something in the distance. A young woman holds a baby while she works on a laptop with her other hand. A woman smiles as two toddlers crawl into her lap and hang off her arm. Another woman beams, nose-to-nose with a baby who grabs her cheek.

Now a woman in a blazer and patterned scarf speaks to Jessica's right. A blue banner with white text appears below her.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Kate Ryder Founder & CEO, Maven Clinic

KATE RYDER: We've had a fantastic partnership with UHC and Optum over the last three years. One of Maven’s core products is our care delivery platform, virtually. So we have about 30 different types of providers across 350 subspecialties, all focused on women's and family health.

A woman holds a phone to her ear and works on a computer with a child on her lap. The child colors on her desk while she works. An African-American woman leans over a baby with an adoring look. Now, Dr. Saul speaks on the panel.

DR. SAUL: As an obstetrician. Obviously, my mind is very focused right now on the maternal mortality rates that we're seeing in African-American women.

A blue-tinted photo of a pregnant African-American woman appears. Soft piano music plays as white text fades in over the photo.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Black mothers are three to four times more likely to die from childbirth than those who are white or Hispanic. A Black mother with a college education is at 60% greater risk for a maternal death than a white or Hispanic woman with less than a high school education.

DR. SAUL: Recognizing as employers that you have many, many women in your ranks that are going through their pregnancies, not with rainbows and butterflies, but literally afraid that they're going to die during their pregnancy, during their childbirth or in the postpartum period. And thinking about that weight and how that impacts your ability to do your job.

A woman in an olive green shacket to the left of Dr. Paul speaks. White text appears in a blue banner in the lower left of the view.

ONSCREEN TEXT: Stephanie Fehr Chief People Officer at UnitedHealthcare

STEPHANIE FEHR: One of the things we know is that psychological safety is correlated with retention and engagement. The human journey is really complicated, and I think after covid, what we learned is there's not a lot of boundary between your personal life and your professional life. So we have to get really savvy about making sure that we are equipped to deal with the individual needs of the employee.

Now a family runs through a golden field beneath a sweeping blue sky. The two parents hold hands with three children, hoisting the youngest in the air between them. A woman wearing wireless headphones works on a laptop in a dining room with a baby on her lap.

The UnitedHealthcare logo appears in the center of a white background. The logo fades, revealing blue text.

ONSCREEN TEXT: United Healthcare

The view fades to black.

When people think of women’s health, the first topics that often come to mind may be gynecological concerns such as infertility, menopause, pregnancy and childbirth. However, these issues only represent a piece of the full picture of women’s health.

Women and children in the U.S. face a variety of challenges and barriers to well-being. These range from the circumstances that shape health — including one’s employment, education, neighborhood and family situation — to mental health and mortality.

“Because healthy women and children are the foundation of healthy, strong communities everywhere, it is critical that we understand the challenges they face,” said Dr. Lisa Saul, chief medical officer of maternal child health at UnitedHealthcare. “In order for the family to remain healthy, the woman in that family needs to be healthy. She is often responsible for keeping everyone else on track in terms of their health journey and their health goals.”

UnitedHealthcare hosted a Women’s Health Summit in February to share recent trends affecting women’s health with corporate human resources leaders.

“Our data show that women have a unique set of health care concerns and are at higher risk of developing certain conditions and diseases than men,” said Craig Kurtzweil, chief data & analytics officer at UnitedHealthcare. “These issues have an immense impact on the health and well-being of women and families across the country.”

Recent UnitedHealthcare claims data¹ show trends in the utilization of the health care system and disease prevalence based on age, gender and ethnicity. Some key findings:

Women’s bodies go through major changes throughout their lives, leading to differences in health concerns for varying age groups.
Differences exist in the utilization patterns and health of women across ethnicities.
Many women not only manage their own ongoing health conditions, but they also play an important role in health care decision-making within their families and are often responsible for the bulk of caregiving for children and aging family members.

“Women are less likely than men to get continued care once they have a chronic condition — conditions like diabetes, heart disease, chronic lung disease. Men, once they get that wake-up call, are more likely to get care for that chronic condition,” said Dr. Rhonda Randall, chief medical officer at UnitedHealthcare.

According to the National Institutes of Health, women in the United States make approximately 80% of the health care decisions for their families.

“Employers are increasingly seeking benefits to help women and their families with things like care navigation, parental journey support and backup childcare,” said Jessica Paik, CEO of national accounts at UnitedHealthcare Employer & Individual.

Addressing maternal health equity

Pregnancy-related mortality rates have declined around the world due to medical advancements. However, the United States has one of the highest maternal death rates among the world’s developed nations. And for Black women, the risk is even higher.

Black mothers are three to four times more likely to die from childbirth than those who are white or Hispanic. And a Black mother with a college education is at 60% greater risk for a maternal death than a white or Hispanic woman with less than a high school education.

“Employers should be mindful that you may have many, many women in your ranks that are going through their pregnancies, not with rainbows and butterflies, but literally afraid that they’re going to die during their pregnancy, during their childbirth, or in the postpartum period. The weight of that worry can impact a person’s ability to do their job,” Dr. Saul said.

Stephanie Fehr, chief people officer for UnitedHealthcare, said it’s important that employers create an atmosphere of psychological safety, which can improve retention and engagement.

“The human journey is really complicated,” Stephanie said. “And I think after the pandemic, what we learned is there are not a lot of boundaries between your personal life and your professional life. So, we have to get really savvy about making sure that we are equipped to deal with the individual needs of the employee.”

To hear more from the Women’s Health Leadership Summit, watch the video above.

Read more about understanding women’s health .

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