Lessons from the best medical aid contact centre in SA
When Medihelp was named Best Medical Aid Client Care Contact Centre in the recent Customer Experience Index, it was more than a trophy moment.
It was public recognition of something far harder to build than a ranking: a service culture that holds steady when members are stressed, vulnerable, and looking for clarity.
Empathy meets competence
For a contact centre in the medical aid space, winning an award like this is very important. Healthcare interactions are rarely neutral.
They’re often wrapped in urgency, fear, confusion, and financial pressure. In this environment, service excellence is not about scripting empathy. It’s about building an operation where empathy and competence can coexist at a grand scale.
Amanda Prinsloo, who has spent 30 years in customer care and worked her way up to Contact Centre Manager, describes the award as the result of years of deliberate culture-building rather than a short-term campaign.
“It starts at the top,” says Amanda. “Varsha has really set the pace for this care culture within Medihelp.” This leadership recognition is significant.
Since Varsha Vala became Principal Officer on 1 March 2024, Medihelp has continued to position care, member experience, and human-centred thinking as strategic priorities.
The Scheme has described Vala’s leadership approach as focused on member needs, agility, innovation, and outstanding client experiences.
Care that reaches beyond slogans
At Medihelp, care is more than a value on a wall. It is embedded in the way leaders show up for their people every day.
This action includes: visible recognition, open-door leadership, regular check-ins, and systems designed to support employees who now work largely in hybrid or remote settings. Within Amanda’s team, weekly meetings cover both operational priorities and personal check-ins. Monthly face-to-face sessions create space for one-on-one feedback, while monthly “family meetings” bring remote consultants together to share performance updates, celebrate birthdays, and recognise exceptional work.
In other words, culture is intentionally built through everyday actions rather than occasional initiatives.
Why employee experience matters
Medihelp frames its CE-Index recognition success around a simple idea: technology can improve service, but people create trust. This sentiment is especially true in a medical aid contact centre, where members are often navigating claims, chronic medication, treatment approvals, or unexpected costs – simultaneously.
Amanda believes exceptional member experiences begin long before a consultant answers the phone. She says the team is hand-picked through a rigorous recruitment process designed to find mature, empathetic individuals suited to a sensitive environment.
The average age in the call centre is currently around 42 years, and the average tenure is more than 10 years – an unusually long period for contact centre environments, and one that brings depth, consistency, and emotional maturity to any member interaction.
Systems behind the empathy
Importantly, a caring culture does not mean soft standards. In fact, Medihelp’s model relies on pairing emotional intelligence with operational discipline.
Here’s a look at the know-how that supports consultants on the floor:
- Comprehensive multiskilling from the start, which lasts for at least three months,
- Buddy coaching before independent work,
- A live coach line for support on tricky calls,
- Silent monitoring to provide real-time guidance,
- A shared knowledge base across the organisation,
- Ongoing quality assurance feedback, and
- Remote technical support for work-from-home consultants.
Amanda describes it as a combined effort where “teamwork makes the dream work”.
This is a philosophy that aligns closely with Medihelp’s broader brand positioning, including initiatives such as the CareTogether programme, which emphasises practical, emotional, and logistical support during life’s toughest moments.
The leadership lesson behind the award
Excellence in a medical aid contact centre is built when leaders:
- Model care visibly,
- Stay close to their teams,
- Recognise progress, not only top performance,
- Equip people with training and tools,
- Balance regulation with humanity, and
- Keep evolving with member expectations.
As members’ needs and service preferences continue to change, Medihelp remains focused on embracing innovation without losing the human connection that defines its service culture. Digital channels like WhatsApp and web chat continue to grow in importance, but meaningful human interaction remains at the heart of every member experience.
“It’s non-negotiable,” Amanda says of her team’s customer service excellence. “Employees are our greatest asset, and the care we give them reflects on the broader Medihelp community.”
The award is a testament to over 120 years of Medihelp doing things the right way and proof of what sustained care can look like when leadership, systems, and people are truly aligned.
Written for Medihelp by Vanessa Rogers
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