A look back on Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2021
As October’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month comes to an end, we look back over the stories shared by the people living with, or supporting those with, breast cancer.
This month we have been sharing stories about the prevalence and impact of breast cancer in the UK and around the world. Breast cancer is now the most common cancer globally, with 2.3 million women diagnosed and 685,000 deaths in 2020 alone.
With the disease on the increase, we’ve been hearing from our customers about the support they’ve received through their breast cancer diagnosis. We’ve also gone behind the scenes with our claims handlers to find out more about the specialist training they receive to help them deal with vulnerable claimants.
How breast cancer affected Natalie’s finances
Because a cancer diagnosis tends to come without warning, many people may not have the financial security in place to immediately cover income, have increased bills or rack up travel costs to medical appointments.
For Natalie, one of our critical illness claimants, her breast cancer diagnosis came at a time when she was already dealing with unrelated chronic illness and had already used the majority of her sick pay from work. She shared how critical illness created financial breathing space for her and her family.
How Lucy’s dedicated nurse helped her
When Lucy*, a single mum of two, was diagnosed with breast cancer, she found it difficult to know who to talk to. Her teenage daughter was worried her mum might die, and Lucy’s increased anxiety after her diagnosis left her feeling apprehensive and worried about her future. She was facing surgery and the possibility of chemo’ or radiation and was looking for support.
When Lucy claimed on her critical illness policy, the claims team also referred her to RedArc Assured Ltd as she has access to Wellbeing Support included in her policy. RedArc assigned an experienced, registered nurse to Lucy, who took the time to get to know her and to understand her needs during one-to-one phone calls.
Lucy told us about the practical and emotional personal support she received from her nurse, and how it helped her cope with her diagnosis.
Dealing with breast cancer claims with compassion
Our claims team are the first point of contact for individuals and families who have been recently diagnosed with an illness or have passed away. We have 20 trained claims assessors who deal with every claim with compassion and understanding. To make the process as personalised as possible, claimants are given their own dedicated claims handler to take on their case.
We understand that handling claims means speaking to people who are potentially very vulnerable. And our recent partnership with the Samaritans has given handlers the support they need in dealing with difficult conversations with their customers. Our handlers’ Samaritans’ training covers two integral skills: listening and conversations.
Listening sessions are tailored for our non-medical claims team and covers the key listening skills when dealing with our customers, while our conversations session is tailored for our medical claims’ teams. It includes the listening skills, and the addition of how to hold a conversation with our customers to ensure we can be supportive.
Find out more about our Samaritans training
For more information on breast cancer including signs, symptoms, and where to get help, visit Breast Cancer Now
*Name has been changed
