Pharmacogenomics: Personalized health and productivity

5 minutes

One of your key employees is away on sick leave. He’s been battling severe depression for months now.

Despite numerous treatments, his condition has not improved and he’s been experiencing dizziness and numbness. His morale is low. Each new drug takes time. Each failure delays his recovery.

You feel helpless. You’d like to help, but how. Your employees’ health is important to you.

What are your options? Have you considered pharmacogenomics?

What is pharmacogenomics?

Imagine being able to predict how a person will react to specific medication. Imagine being able to forego trial and error. By analyzing a person’s DNA, pharmacogenomics can help pinpoint the right medicine for the right person.

Still a fledgling scientific field, pharmacogenomics opens up a world of possibilities. By better understanding genes and their functions, doctors can more quickly choose the most effective treatments for mental health problems, ADHD and chronic pain. Result: fewer side effects, more positive outcomes.

Pharmacogenomics transforms the way we approach health care. It can develop safer, more effective, and personalized drug therapies based on an individual's genetic profile. It’s like instead of shopping off the rack, you have your clothes tailor made.

That being said, pharmacogenomics must not be confused with genetic testing, which is used to detect a person’s predisposition to a particular disease.

To learn more about pharmacogenomic testing, watch Biron's video (This hyperlink will open in a new tab).

Pharmacogenomics: A win-win option for your company

Providing the right care, at the right time, changes everything! Pharmacogenomics is an innovation that your company should make use of. It can improve the health of your employees, enabling them to perform better, while also keeping the costs of your group insurance plan under control.

When treatment works right away, recovery is much faster. Employees will return to work sooner, in better shape. Their risk of relapse also decreases. By avoiding trial and error, we gain time and efficiency.

Fewer work absences also mean less pressure on teams. Productivity boosts. The workplace climate is less stressful. Everyone wins.

By focusing on personalized medicine, we avoid ineffective treatment. The good news: the more effective the group insurance plan, the easier it is to control costs. Pharmacogenomics means investing in health... and the future.

Finding the right medication for depression

Do all antidepressants work all the time? It's not that simple. Given the variety of treatments available, it often takes several tries before you find the one that really works.

Let’s take a look at the remission rates of patients who are prescribed successive antidepressants.

  • 37% after the first trial
  • 31% after the second
  • 14% after the third
  • 13% after the fourth

In light of these numbers, the method for treating depression has changed. In the event that the first medication fails, doctors will immediately recommend pharmacogenomic tests to the patient. This allows for identifying the right antidepressant more quickly.

This process can take months. In the meantime, the patient is suffering. The patient waits for the treatment to take effect, while dealing with side effects. And if that doesn't work, it's back to square one! New drug, new adaptation period.

For employees, it’s an ordeal. For employers, it's a health and productivity issue.

Pharmacogenomics for disability management

When it seems like an employee's disability leave is not progressing, the insurer may consider different support solutions to help them recover and return to work.

We will recommend Biron pharmacogenomic tests when certain criteria are met.

However, employees always have the right to accept or refuse. Their decision has no effect on claims.

Employee identity and results are always kept confidential. Under the Genetic Non-Discrimination Act, this information will never be provided to the insurer or the employer.

What if pharmacogenomics was part of your group plan?

To fully integrate pharmacogenomics into your group insurance plan, it’s important to work with your insurer to evaluate your needs and benefits, which include:

  • offering an additional solution for your employees
  • improving employee health and well-being
  • encouraging their presence at work
  • reducing the likelihood of disability leave
  • maximizing the chances of a successful return to work

If you decide to move forward with pharmacogenomics, you need to promote it to your employees. An internal memo with a link to the laboratory's website is the simplest option.

If your group insurance plan is with us, your employees are entitled to a discount for tests conducted at Biron (This hyperlink will open in a new tab). It's up to you to spread the word!

For more information, please contact your account executive or your group insurance advisor.