Number of employees who received healthcare benefits through the organization’s programs during the reporting period.
Organizations should footnote the types of benefits provided. See usage guidance for further information.
This metric is intended to capture how many employees received healthcare through the organization’s benefits during the reporting period. Types of healthcare benefits provided by the organization could include primary care, outpatient care, inpatient care, maternal services, dental care, vision care, hearing care, prescription drugs, prenatal care, mental health services, family planning, and preventative screening, among others. Organizations should footnote which types of benefits are provided.
This metric is multi-dimensional with regard to the five dimensions of impact: it may help describe the WHO dimension when the stakeholder group represented by the metric is the stakeholder group targeted by the investment or organization. It may also help measure the HOW MUCH Scale dimension, which helps estimate the number of the targeted stakeholders experiencing the outcome. For more on the alignment of IRIS metrics to the five dimensions of impact, see IRIS+ and the Five Dimensions of Impact (https://iris.thegiin.org/document/iris-and-the-five-dimensions/). No single metric is sufficient to understand an impact; rather, metrics are selected as a set across all dimensions of impact. When possible, the selection of metrics to measure and describe the five dimensions should be based on best practice and evidence.
Metrics identified as "cross-category" are those that are relevant to any IRIS+ Impact Category or Impact Theme (i.e., these metrics are not specific to any particular industry/category or theme).
June 2022 - IRIS v5.3 Released (current version)
Material change. Minor revisions to metric name, definition and usage guidance for clarity.
January 2020 - IRIS v5.1 Released
No change.
May 2019 - IRIS v5.0 Released
No change.
March 2016 - IRIS v4.0 Released
No change.
March 2014 - IRIS v3.0 Released
Immaterial change. Minor revision to definition language for clarity.
November 2011 - IRIS v2.2 Released
No change.
February 2011 - IRIS v2.1 Released
No change.
September 2010 - IRIS v2.0 Released
Immaterial change. Healthcare Benefits: Participants (OI4061) replaced Healthcare Benefits: Employees (OE11.1). IRIS ID / metric name changed due to framework upgrade. Minor revision to definition language for clarity.
September 2009 - IRIS v1.0 Released
New metric. Healthcare Benefits: Employees (OE11.1) was developed via the Original IRIS Working Group.
IRIS Metrics Work Better in Sets
To use IRIS metrics—and the resulting data—to understand impact performance, IRIS metrics should be used and analyzed in generally accepted sets and according to well-defined objectives. IRIS+ gives you access to generally accepted Core Metrics Sets aligned to common Impact Themes and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).