Posts from — July 2010

When developing a comprehensive Wellness Program, make sure that it consists of a variety of awareness, lifestyle change, supportive environment programs, policies and activities that target risk behaviors, and the needs and interests of the workers.

It’ll be important to review and revise existing policies governing such areas as use of tobacco sections and the staff cafeteria.

Tips on designing a Wellness Program –

• Develop activities based on your plan objectives addressing the specific needs of your workers. Focus on those topics that are of greatest interest to your workers and the greatest needs of your corporation, in that order. Prevent topics with narrow appeal.

• Keep it simple. Design the Wellness Program so it’s easy for the participants to understand and track.

• Integrate a combination of activities to include awareness, educational, and behavior elements.

• Select activities in which every staff member can participate.

Suggestions for your Wellness Program –

• Challenges. Activities that focus on practicing a desired behavior that continues for 4-8 weeks and focuses on specific topics (such as exercise, nutrition, or stress management).

• Learning experiences. This includes seminars, videos, and classes.

• Behavior changes (such as smoking cessation). You might or may not offer interventions at the workplace. Nonetheless, you ought to encourage person to make lifestyle changes that they want to make even without an external incentive.

• Education on disease management. for example, support and education groups for diabetes, high blood pressure, etc.

• Learing new skills. for  instance, CPR and first aid.

• Preventive screenings like blood pressure, cholesterol, and vision.

Source –  Altered from the Building Healthy Texans Corporate Wellness Toolkit.

Create objectives and objectives

Goals are general guidelines that explain what you want to achieve. Goals define strategies or steps to take to attain the identified goal.

A wellness program should have a “destination”. Use the results of your surveys and your wellness committee’s mission statement as guides. Consider these ideas –  

• Focus on making medical information and learning resources readily available to employees

• Focus on group activities so staff members can work together to support and encourage healthier lifestyles

• Create a wellness program that is visible to both workers and to your customers

• Focus on written policies and guidelines

• Be certain to set objectives for your wellness program.

Review Guidelines for Writing Goals.

Wellness Program Objectives Should be

Specific – A goal is specific when it provides a description of what’ll be accomplished. It will state exactly what the organization intends to accomplish.

It ought to be written so that it can be easily and obviously communicated. A specific goal will make it easier for those writing objectives and action plans to address the following questions –  

• Who’s to be involved?

• What is to be accomplished?

• Where is it to be done?

• When is it to be done?

Measurable – A goal is measurable if it’s quantifiable. to determine if your goal is measurable, ask questions such as –  How much? How many? How will I know when it’s accomplished?

Attainable – You can attain most any goal you set when you plan your steps wisely and establish a time frame that allows you to carry out those steps. Goals that might have seemed far away and out of reach eventually move closer and become attainable.

Realistic – Realistic, means “do-able.” the goal needs to be realistic for your organization and where the organization is at the moment.

A goal to take out all the high fat items in the vending machine may not be realistic for your business right now; a better goal would be to substitute some of the chips, candy bars and pies for pretzels, yogurt and dried fruit.

Timely – In conclusion, a goal must’ve a timeframe –  for next week, in three months, by age 35. It must’ve a beginning and ending point. It should also have some intermediate points at which progress may be evaluated.

Limiting the time in which a goal must be accomplished helps to focus effort toward its achievement. When you don’t set a time, the commitment is too vague. It tends not to happen because you feel you can begin at any time. Without a time limit, there’s no urgency to begin taking action now.

Successful wellness programs are designed to meet the needs and interests of the staff members. Ask staff members what they are interested in, and what needs they have.

Individuals  are more willing to participate and support wellness efforts when they are involved in the decision-making process. Review the sample worker survey provided below.

Worker Interest Survey – can be edited (http – //www.ibx.com/pdfs/custom/worksite_wellness/company_tools/employee_interest_survey.doc)

When developing a recent survey, keep the following hints in mind –

• Ask mostly closed form questions, especially if you will be sending the survey to a big number of workers. Closed form questions provide specific options and are easy to tabulate.

• Invite comments, suggestions and recommendations, or ask open-ended questions after the survey. Open-ended items are more challenging to summarize.

• Include a brief explanatory cover letter with the survey with the signature of the corporation president. Be certain to include a statement about confidentiality and anonymity.

• Ask a group of representative workers to review the survey before it’s distributed. Find out if the questions will be understood by workers and will not be objected to.

• Include demographic information at the beginning, or end of the survey (gender, age, shift, site, department, etc.).

• Conduct a random drawing for a valued incentive item for all those who returned the survey. This could increase the response rate.

One rule to consider concerning surveys is when you’ve fewer than 500 employees, everyone should receive one. the advantage of everyone receiving a recent survey can be significant. If you’ve over 500 employees, a sample of the work population from each department will suffice.

The higher the response, the more valid and reliable the results. A minimum response of 40 percent to 50 percent is considered valuable.

A critical first step in organizing your corporation’s wellness program is the formation of a wellness committee. the focus of the wellness committee is to plan, promote, and implement the program.

The committee establishes continuity, motivation, and broad ownership of the program as well as provides an great automobile for communication.

So who must be on the committee? Consider appointing the following people /departments to your committee –

• Top management within your company

• Union representatives

• Human resources (HR)  department

• Worker assistance program

• Information technology

• Communications

• Health and safety department

• Workers interested in wellness

Building a successful wellness program requires staff time in addition to money. Some bigger organizations may spend 20 hours per week for three to six months preparing all the steps prior to launching a wellness program.

Anywhere from 4 to 10 people  meeting monthly equals a wellness committee. A mission statement for the committee should be developed by the second meeting. This way, everyone knows what the committee is working toward.

Download sample minutes from a local worksite. (WORD DOC –  http – //www.ibx.com/pdfs/custom/worksite_wellness/corporation_tools/walking_works_minutes.doc)

Once a wellness program has been established, the committee’s size and meeting schedule may change. Still, no fewer than 4 members ought to meet at least quarterly so the group – and the wellness program – does not fade away.

Support from management is essential to building a successful wellness program! Visible  senior level management support is among the most critical factors in the success of a worksite Wellness Program.

Executive management executives are responsible for making sure that the organization meets its objectives. They can provide additional assistance by helping you to link your Wellness Program objectives to business outcomes, thereby positioning Wellness Program as a fundamental part of the organization.

It is important to create support and excitement for the program from all levels of the company including  senior level management, mid-level management, and grass-root workers.

The challenge for any Wellness Program coordinator is convincing  senior management about the potential value of Wellness Program to the organization and conceptualizing how Wellness Program programs can impact the organization in a meaningful manner.

The American Journal of Wellness is a great resource to assist you with obtaining convincing information on the benefits of a Wellness Program.

Wellness Program support from management can come in many different ways –

• Involvement in the planning process

• Distribution of funding for the wellness program

• Support for time given to the wellness program

• Participation in wellness events

• Leadership by management, like the distribution of a letter of support for the program.

• Download a sample letter requesting  senior level management support. (http – //www.ibx.com/pdfs/custom/worksite_wellness/business_tools/sr_mgt_support.doc)

• Flexibility of staff member schedules to accommodate wellness activities

The first step in developing your wellness/Wellness Program is to understand your organization and how Wellness Program will fit into the current structure.

By researching your corporation’s history with similar programs and eliciting feedback from coworkers, you can find the best solution for your organization.

Wellness Program –  Research Questions

• Find out when Wellness Program has been done in the past. When so, what worked and what did not?

• Was it widely accepted?

• Was programming successful? Why or why not?

• What does your business hope to gain from starting a Wellness Program?

Answers to these questions will help you start the process of creating a culture of wellness within your organization. It is imperative that you assess the environment before beginning a program.

Wellness Program –  Worker Feedback

In addition, you can begin the process of understanding your organization by analyzing  the survey below –

WORD DOC –  http – //www.ibx.com/pdfs/custom/worksite_wellness/company_tools/work_climate_survey.doc

The costs of healthcare have been rising more than 10 percent annually for several years. A substantial amount of the money spent in the healthcare system treats expensive diseases and diseases.

• Approximately 95% of the $1.4 trillion that we spend as a nation on health goes to direct medical services, while about 5% is allocated to preventing disease and promoting health.

• Potentially, 50% to 70% of all diseases are avoidable as they’re associated with modifiable health risks.

• In an effort to optimize staff member health, reduce avoidable health care utilization and enhance work performance, and in turn lower health care costs and improve staff member satisfaction and retention, many businesses are developing, or are interested in developing, Wellness Programs for workers.

The benefits of corporate wellness are well documented. More than 120 scientific research studies repeatedly show themes such as improvements in health outcomes coupled with high returns on investment (ROI). Some major findings include the following –

• Savings of $3.48 in reduced health care costs per dollar invested.

• Savings of $5.82 in reduce absenteeism costs per dollar invested.

• ROIs of at least $3 to $8 per dollar invested within five years of program implementation.

• Lifestyle behavior change programs –  $3 to $6 ROI within 2 to 5 years.

• Self care, decision support programs –  $2 to $3 ROI within a year.

• Disease management programs –  $7 to $10 ROI within a year.

By offering health improvement programs, corporations aren’t only providing an additional service for employees, but they are also gaining financially. Furthermore, the impact of a health improvement program goes beyond decreased healthcare cost and ROI.

A health improvement program can affect productivity, absenteeism, morale, recruitment success, turnover, and medical care costs.

* Source –  Rees, C., and Finch, R. (2004). Health Improvement –  A extensive guide to designing, starting and evaluating  worksite programs. National Business Group on Health, 1 (1), 1-7.

According to the American Journal of Wellness, “Wellness is the science and art of helping individuals  change their lifestyle to move toward a state of optimal health.

Optimal health is defined as a balance of physical, emotional, social, spiritual, and intellectual health. Lifestyle change can be facilitated through a combination of efforts to enhance awareness, change behavior, and create environments that support good health practices.

Of the three, supportive environments will probably have the greatest impact in producing lasting change.”

Wellness Program –  Action Steps

The process of building a Wellness Program involves –

• Identifying the current health status of your employees

• Determiningthe appropriate programs and interventions to offer

• Promoting and beginning the programs

• Building in motivational incentives

• Measuring the impact

• Revising programs based on evaluation outcomes

It may even include developing policies and procedures that support staff member participation in wellness activities at your worksite (such as flextime).

Steps to Starting a Wellness Program

• Conduct an organizational assessment

• Obtain management support

• Establish a wellness committee

• Obtain employee input

• Develop goals and goals

• Design and implement program activities

• Choose incentives

• Evaluate outcomes

One of the ways the government plans to improve the nation’s health is through comprehensive Wellness Programs.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, these programs might help employees live healthier lifestyles by creating supportive work environments and offering awareness, education and behavior change programs.

Indeed, one of the goals of Healthy People  2010, a set of health goals for the nation to achieve by the year 2010, is to elevate the proportion of staff members that participate in a extensive Wellness Program at their worksite to 75 percent.

5 Ways to Assess and Improve Your Employees’ Health

Emotional health is a state of wellness that comes from understanding and acknowledging our emotions and finding appropriate ways to express them.

As staff members, we often bring emotional problems from our childhood or current family life into the workplace because we have not dealt with them effectively outside of work.

This can seriously damage workplace relationships and lead to poor performance and negative feelings all around.

Many tools and techniques exist for assisting us improve our emotional health. Some of the most common are given below, with real-life case histories illustrating their use.

When an unpleasant mood or feeling persists over a length of time, don’t hesitate to seek out a certified specialist. Wellness programs ordinarily have specialist support already in place as part of their services.

1. Coaching/Counseling –

One of the hallmarks of emotional health is the willingness to ask for help when we need it.

Confidential expert help, the coaching and counseling provided by employee assistance or wellness programs, can provide an external source of strength and insight for “working out” emotionally-based problems instead of “working them in” to your job.

2. Self-help Groups –

Self-help groups are designed to aid people  in emotional situations in which they feel alone. the purpose of these groups is twofold –  to allow people  to safely feel and express their emotions, and to help break their isolation at work and/or in society at large and reintegrate them into society with the support of a peer group.

The classic self-help group is Alcoholics Anonymous, but thanks to technology, it’s possible to connect with others that have common health challenges, no matter how unique the situation.

People  are taking benefit of tele-conference groups and social web sites, like sparkpeople .com and revolutionhealth.com. Wellness programs often have such groups available through internet based or telephone support. Progressive corporate wellness provider

Exan Wellness, for example, offers teleconference cell groups and moderated wellness forums for interacting with others in a supportive, confidential and unknown environment.

Individuals  with shared challenges get together and discuss the emotional challenges they are facing at work or in other areas of their lives and work through change together.

3. Journaling –  Journaling is often advised by counsellors as a way to help identify and process emotions. Individuals  record their emotions in writing as they experience them, in no matter what form they wish.

By helping the writer gain greater emotional clarity, journaling can help in making more emotionally informed decisions. In much the same way, letter writing enables people  to identify and process the emotions they feel about others.

The letter does not have to be sent or its contents shared –  it simply provides a place for the expression of feelings.

An 18-year-old “army brat,” Brent has always done well at school, academically and athletically. But in his last year of high school, something seems to have happened to him. He’s lost all interest in school, becoming moody and withdrawn.

Brent describes to his guidance counselor all the times he’d to move when he was growing up. Each move wrenched him from his friends and forced him to play the role of the “new kid on the block.”

The counselor suggests that Brent write letters to the friends he’s missed over the years telling them how he felt. Finally, he’s a chance to say a proper goodbye.

4. Assess Your Emotional Health –  Businesses that seek to increase employees’ interpersonal skills, or emotional intelligence in the workplace are more successful, as reported by ground-breaking journalist Daniel Goleman.

And emotional intelligence is the buzzword in workplaces these days. Some wellness programs have information about emotional intelligence, or emotional health assessments. Seek out more information about emotional intelligence for better corporate wellness.

5. Friendships/Support Systems –  Friendships allow individuals  to feel supported in their emotional journeys. at the same time, they give individuals  an opportunity to create their empathetic skills.

These skills are also important for workplace health. When we’re empathic with fellow workers, we help them resolve negative or unhealthful emotions. New friendships are made through hobbies, classes, clubs, or even through web-based groups.

Many individuals  are locating emotional satisfaction by connecting or re-connecting with friends through Facebook and other social websites.

Sometimes workplace stress that is not dealt with in a healthy manner may be brought home. A 36-year-old mother of three, Sarah, wants to be a good wife, a good mother, and a success at her job.

One day, drained after a long day at work, she shouted at her rambunctious kids and threatened to hit her youngest son. Her behavior horrified her. to make matters worse, she believes she is a failure at her job as well as at motherhood. She watches with jealousy as younger peers advance much more rapidly up the corporate ladder despite having less experience than she has.

On the advice of a counselor, she decides to take time out for herself and take a course for amateur painters. It doesn’t take long before she strikes up a friendship with a single mom in the class.

She once led a life very similar to Sarah’s before managing to achieve a better balance between work and family. Her new friend becomes a much-needed sounding board for Sarah and offers her perspectives on her life that she had not considered before.

25% Jump in Corporation Interest in Staff Member Wellness

Corporate wellness for their employees, companys are discovering, is good for the health of their corporations as well. Wellness programs help to cut the costs associated with poor worker health, which include absenteeism, loss of productivity and poor work quality.

A recent Hewitt Associates survey of over 500 USA corporations indicated a meaningful paradigm shift in how corporations view health benefits for their employees.

Of those surveyed this year, 88% are committed to instituting long-term healthcare assistance programs (over the next 3-5 years) for their employees, with the goal of increaseing the health and productivity of their workforce. This represents a 25% increase in interest in wellness programs over 2007.

A strong offering of wellness programs to meet the demand has resulted. Health assistance providers have broadened their programs with tools that address general lifestyle factors, physical, social and psychological health factors.

Programs look to predict chronic illness in their staff members and give them the tools and the information to prevent it. Businesses also demand a way to measure the effectiveness of their health care spending.

Self-care is our motive, says Vic Lebouthillier, president of progressive wellness provider Exan Wellness.”We really believe giving employees tools to help them manage their own health, and promoting the benefits, while giving people  resources to reach out for help is the key to successful lifestyle change.

Corporations are also telling us they need a cost-effective way to deliver wellness programs. the type of program we have created over years delivers the highest health care return on investment.”

Combining corporate wellness promotions, web-based assessments and health trackers, web-based health information, telephone conferences and self-help groups, and access to a broad variety of health professionals, is behind the success of the Exan program. “Having web-based statistics about employees’ health also makes it easier to track the bottom line – ROI” says Vic Lebouthillier.

Companies are moving beyond their traditional role as a provider of healthcare benefits to create holistic programs that pinpoint the specific health needs of their worker populations, drive worker behavior change and eliminate barriers to healthcare, says Jim Winkler, leader of Hewitt’s health management consulting practice.

Nonetheless, in a separate survey of 30,000 workers, 74% said that, although they felt their business had an obligation to help them understand how to use their health benefits program, only 12% felt the business had any right to tell them how to be healthy.

Based on these results, companys need to drive home the fact that improved health is better for their workers as well as the corporation. It’s a win-win situation.

Companys and employees did find common ground when it came to future health care. Both surveys indicate that 95% of employees understand that their taking care of their health today will impact future health care payments.

A similar percentage also understand the important of early detection and avoidance when it comes to saving on health care costs.

Cost is important for most businesses as well. Over 80 percent of those surveyed made cost mitigation a priority for 2008, but those cuts didn’t involve shifting responsibility for healthcare onto employees.

Although 64 percent of businesses have shifted costs to their employees, only 17 percent plan to do so in the next 3-5 years. In like manner with health reimbursement accounts, 20 percent now offer these, but only about 5 percent plan to use them in 2008.

These survey leads todicate businesses are getting more proactive in assisting their workers to change behaviors and take ownership of their own health futures. This is clearly good for the well-being of workers, but also for the well-being of the businesses they work for.

Almost half the businesses surveyed were convinced that changing health behaviors was key to increased productivity and lower absentee rates. Over 60% plan to institute programs that help employees change and/or sustain a healthier lifestyle.

Almost of these companies will also use data and measurements to ensure their healthcare strategies meet their healthcare objectives?