Dentalcorp brings coast-to-coast virtual care to 11,000 team members

Dentalcorp is Canada's largest dental services organization, operating 600+ locations across the country with 11,000 team members and 5.6 million patient visits annually. Their people spend every day caring for patients, but getting the same level of care for themselves was harder than it should have been. With team members spread from downtown Toronto to remote communities in Northern B.C. and the Yukon, Dentalcorp needed a virtual care solution that could reach everyone, regardless of where they worked or lived. They found it in Dialogue.

Challenge

Dentalcorp's workforce spans every region in Canada, including remote and underserved communities where timely access to care is limited.
Mental health was emerging as the primary health concern across the workforce — and existing benefits weren't equipped to meet that need at scale.
Dentalcorp needed a solution that could deliver consistent, high-quality support to over 11,000 team members, regardless of where they lived or worked.

Solution

Dialogue's Employee Assistance Program gave every Dentalcorp employee across Canada access to mental health counselling, work-life and well-being support, and internet-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (iCBT) from day one.
An intuitive, mobile-first platform enabled members to access care between shifts, at lunch, or from home, without disrupting their day.
In Quebec, along with EAP, members can also manage their physical and mental health needs through Dialogue’s Primary Care program on a single integrated platform, with 24/7 access to a multidisciplinary care team.

Results

54%

of registered members have used Dialogue at least once

5 / 5

member satisfaction score across all programs

More than 1 in 3

consultations are for virtual mental health support

Early intervention

Members access care within hours or days, not weeks or months,
getting well sooner and staying on the job

Coast-to-coast virtual care

Equal access to care for team members in every region, including remote communities

Dentalcorp's team members are at their best when they feel supported. Working in patient care is rewarding, and having reliable access to health and well-being resources helps them bring their best to work every day. When Julie Arsenault, who leads Total Rewards + HR Technology at Dentalcorp, looked at what the organization's benefits could offer, two things were clear:

Mental health support was among the most pressing needs across the workforce.
Existing benefits weren't built to deliver it at scale.

The geography made it harder. With team members spread across provinces and territories — from major cities to remote communities — access to in-person care was inconsistent at best, and unavailable at worst.

For many employees, the gap was access. A benefit that required navigating local providers, long wait times, or in-person appointments during a busy clinic day wasn't a benefit most people could actually use.

"Equity in healthcare is really important for us — to be able to offer a benefit available for all of our team members from coast to coast."

Julie Arsenault Total Rewards + HR Technology at Dentalcorp

Dentalcorp evaluated options against a clear set of criteria:

Coast-to-coast reach
Strong clinical standards
A member experience that people would actually appreciate
Minimal disruption to an HR team already managing a large, distributed workforce

Dentalcorp's answer was Dialogue’s Employee Assistance Program: a centralized, consistent offering available to all 11,000+ team members across Canada from the moment they joined.

Through Dialogue's EAP, every Dentalcorp employee has access to mental health counselling, financial and legal support, relationship support, life coaching, and iCBT — all in one app, available 24/7/365.

Members are matched to the right level of support based on what they're dealing with — from self-guided iCBT for mild symptoms to solution-focused counselling for more immediate needs.

And member experience matters, too. "The platform is really user-intuitive. It has a really great user experience, which was really important to us," said Julie. For a workforce that doesn't always sit at a desk, care that's genuinely easy to access is the difference between a benefit people use and one they forget they have.

Scaling care with more
integrated support

In Quebec, where Dentalcorp also offers Primary Care to its roughly 1,800 members, the picture of what integrated virtual care can look like is already taking shape. Quebec members can manage physical and mental health needs on the same platform, with the same care team — and the outcomes reflect it.

Primary Care utilization among Quebec members sits at 45% over a rolling 12-month period, a strong indicator of what high-quality, accessible virtual care can do through a comprehensive platform.

As Canada's only virtual care provider recognized by Accreditation Canada with Exemplary Standing, Dialogue gave Dentalcorp the clinical trust to stand fully behind the offering.

Plus, Dialogue's customer success team supported the full rollout (from onboarding through ongoing member engagement), reducing the administrative burden on Dentalcorp's HR team.

"Dialogue comes in and partners with you on providing employee wellness to the people that work for you."

The impact: Care that reaches people when they need it

Mental health accounts for more than 1 in 3 Dentalcorp consultations, and nearly half of all EAP sessions. The numbers confirm what the benefit was designed to address: a workforce that needed accessible virtual mental health support, and a platform they actually trust enough to use.

Early intervention has become a tangible outcome. Members who might previously have delayed care or gone without can now reach a counsellor or clinician fast. "They're able to seek care within maybe an hour, maybe a day, which allows them to get well sooner," said Julie.

According to Dialogue’s internal data (2023), members saw a 40% decrease in anxiety symptoms within 22 days and depression symptoms within 30 days. Without Dialogue, this is normally the time it takes to see a mental health professional for the first time.

The human stories followed. Team members described waking up at 2 AM with a sick child, unsure what to do, and remembering they had Dialogue. Getting care immediately, rather than heading to an emergency room or waiting until morning, made a real difference to families across the country. Across all programs, the member satisfaction score is 5 out of 5.

Doctor taking notes during a virtual call appointment

Real outcomes for members and the business

Peace of mind,
coast to coast

Equitable access to virtual physical and mental health support means every employee gets the same quality of care. Geography is no longer a barrier to well-being.

Faster support and recovery

Early access to care means members address health concerns before they escalate. For Dentalcorp, this leads to fewer sick days, shorter leaves of absence, and a workforce that spends more time doing what they're good at.

The right support, matched to each member

Dialogue's model matches employees to the right level of mental health support — not a one-size-fits-all solution that leaves some underserved and others overwhelmed. Members get what they need without navigating the system alone.

A virtual care benefit that delivers measurable ROI

A 54% activation rate and a 5/5 member satisfaction score prove that Dentalcorp employees are truly benefiting from the support available.

"Dialogue has made such a huge impact on our team and our community and our Dentalcorp family, that I would recommend it to any organization in Canada."

Julie Arsenault Total Rewards + HR Technology at Dentalcorp

Frequently asked questions

What is an Employee Assistance Program (EAP)?

An Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a workplace benefit that gives employees confidential access to mental health counselling, financial and legal support, and work-life resources. Dialogue's EAP goes beyond the traditional model, combining solution-focused counselling, life coaching, and internet-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (iCBT) in a single, easy-to-use app, with first appointments available within 48 hours.

How does Dialogue's Primary Care program stand apart from traditional employee benefits?

Dialogue's Primary Care program gives member access to an in-house, multidisciplinary care team available within 60 minutes. As the only virtual care provider recognized with Exemplary Standing by Accreditation Canada and 100% compliance across 700+ standards, Dialogue delivers a level of clinical rigour, safety, and service integration that typical benefits packages simply aren't built to match.

How quickly can employees access mental health care through Dialogue?

Dialogue members can book a virtual mental health appointment and be seen within 48 hours. This compares to a Canadian average wait time of up to 6 months to see a mental health professional for the first time through a general practitioner referral.

How does Dialogue support employees in remote or underserved communities?

Dialogue's virtual care platform is accessible from any device, anywhere in Canada, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Employees in remote communities get the same quality of care and access to the same multidisciplinary team as employees in major urban centres.

How does virtual mental health support actually work?

Through Dialogue's platform, members complete a brief intake in 2–5 minutes and are matched to the right type of care, from self-guided iCBT to one-on-one counselling with a licensed provider. All sessions take place virtually on the member's schedule. A care team follows up after every session to support continuity and recovery.

What results can employers expect from offering an EAP through Dialogue?

Dialogue members experience an average 40% decrease in anxiety and depression symptoms in ~30 days. Employers also benefit from reduced absenteeism and shorter leave of absence duration: Dialogue members return to work in an average of 35 days, compared to the industry average of 65 days (Dialogue internal data, 2023). To see the potential impact for your organization, try Dialogue's EAP cost savings calculator.

Is Dialogue's virtual care platform available in French?

Yes. Dialogue is fully bilingual, with team members who can deliver care in both English and French. All programs — including the EAP, Primary Care, Mental Health+, and Wellness — are accessible in both languages across Canada.

Help Centre

How Dentalcorp brought virtual mental health support to 11,000 team members across Canada

Hear what Dentalcorp's Total Rewards + HR Technology Lead, Julie Arsenault, has to say about partnering with Dialogue.

Challenge