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Talking expat health and well-being at the 12th International Mobility Event in Paris
Our head of partnerships, Laurent de Veyrac, travelled to Paris last week to the 12th International Mobility event, hosted by our partners Malakoff Médéric Humanis. It was a welcome chance to talk about all the different elements of health and well-being faced by expatriates, and the innovative and effective ways they can be addressed.
The event was very well structured with thought-provoking sessions, authoritative panellists, an inspiring keynote speaker, and refined décor, food and refreshments. But what else would you expect from an event held in Paris?
Of course, it wasn’t just physical health that was debated, but mental and emotional health too. It’s now estimated that one in four people across the world experience issues with their mental health and arguably, expats are at greater risk given that they tend to be some distance away from their usual support networks. We know from our 2019 social determinants survey, for example, that 64% of expats find making friends a challenge.
However, while there are many areas that expats commonly find challenging, people’s overall experiences tend to be as unique as they are. The support available via virtual health care and the potential for personalised health support through cutting-edge genetics such as DNA testing, for example, piqued the interest of the professionals in the room, and Laurent participated in a discussion that really opened up the conversation around this. In fact, it was of intrinsic value for international HR professionals to know more about how the latest tech advances might be able to positively impact expat’s holistic health and how they can help to facilitate the health and well-being of their employees.
Among attendees, it was acknowledged that companies should be prepared to cater for the individual or family's life outside of work as well. Making sure they can get their new lives set up and have friendly faces to socialise with and talk to can make all the difference. And often, it's only by giving people the opportunity to live and breathe the experience before the official move -- so they can put the context and advice into practise -- that they'll fully appreciate the importance of being prepared and informed. From there, they're more likely to have all the tools and mindset to make it work.
To find out more about our solution for French expatriates, please call +44-870-442-2676 or email us at AGBSalesEurope@aetna.com
