Abstract This paper looks at the development and operations of corporate wellness programs. Since employees typically spend eight or more hours a day in the office, employers can leverage that time to promote better health. Worksite wellness programs can reduce health care spending by promoting healthy behaviors that reduce health risks in high-risk individuals and keep low-risk people healthy. Programs vary in scope, depending on an organization’s size. This paper concludes that an appropriately designed and administered wellness program is an excellent way for companies to show employees that they care while improving the overall physical and mental health of the organization. Designing and establishing a wellness program involves several steps and decisions. Securing the support of top management is essential. Any meaningful change must come from the top. The executive team should define the goals of the program. For many organizations, this could mean reducing health care cost. Maybe there is high absenteeism or perhaps the company’s current culture encourages unhealthy behavior. The next step is to decide on a level of intensity for the program. A clear statement of corporate philosophy in health and wellness is very important. If high productivity is most important, then a wellness program might seek to address absenteeism first, by starting with safety education, stress management, or chronic disease management. If company philosophy emphasizes loyalty and retention, then programs that offer long-term lifestyle education for employees and their families might work best. T... ... middle of paper ... ...ams for employees can reduce health care costs and be a huge benefit to workers, but only if people actually take part. References Aldana, S.G. Financial Impact of Health Promotion Programs: Comprehensive Review of the Literature. American Journal of Health Promotion, 2001,15:296-319 Kossek, E.E., Ozeki, C., Kosier, D.W. (2001) Wellness Incentives: Lessons Learned About Organizational Change. Human Resource Planning, 24,4. Pelletier, K.R. (2001) A Review and Analysis of the Health and Cost-effective Outcome Studies of Comprehensive Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Programs at the Worksite: 1998-2000 Update. American Journal of Health Promotion,16(2):Nov/Dec 2001. Potempa, Allison and Ritter, Steve (2007). Designing an Effective Wellness Program, Step by Step. Retrieved October 29, 2007 from http://www.shrm.org/rewards/library_published/benefits.
Direct Observation during access to food. Settings varied but study was conducted over 28 days.
Employee wellness programs, also known as a “worksite wellness program”, are programs that are designed to promote and support the health, safety, and well being of a company’s employees. Wellness programs are meant to improve the health of the staff, their morale, and in turn also help improve their productivity. There are many components that make up employee wellness programs, for example; Health Screenings, Health Fairs, Fitness classes, Smoking cessation classes, and even wellness issue workshops. Employers have begun adopting these programs in hopes of helping their employees while they are at an age when health interventions can still help transform their long-term health choice. This paper will focus on trends found between employee weight and productivity, and the impacts these could have on a business overall.
The people in the workplace can be categorized into two groups: the employer and the employees. The employees work for their employer and in turn, the employer has the duty and responsibility to ensure that the minimum safety requirements are met. However, employers are not required to provide health insurance benefits to their employees. More often than not, providing health insurance benefits is very costly to the employer and in an attempt to mitigate the costs, employers’ encourage employee participation in various healthy lifestyle programs and initiatives as well as providing incentives for their participation in such programs. These kinds of actions are not always met with enthusiasm, some find it unreasonable to be expected to do so on their own time to change their lifestyle to suit their employers.
Tannahill, A., Tannahill, C., & Downie, R. S. (1999) Health Promotion. Models and Values. Oxford University Press.
campaign and technical assistance to promote the benefits of worksite health promotion. A new CDC
While the strain on the health care system is evidently a major issue, poor health of employees also has been proven to negatively affect the overall performance in the workplace. Alternatively, good health in the workplace has been proven to reduce absenteeism, reduce the costs of disability and dru...
Engaging employees and families in healthy work programs, regular check-ups and illness prevention strategies are smart investments.
We, as people in the workforce, are depended on to follow through with work commitments. A healthy employee is able to do more and feel well enough to enjoy it. We strive to do our best but how can we when we have low morale at the office. Healthy employees directly impact the bottom-line of all companies, from the sole proprietorship to the large corporation (1996). Keeping health-care costs low, boosting morale, increasing productivity, and reducing the absent rate is a payoff that every good business owner should recognize. When a small business is trying to become larger, having employees who are healthy and stress free is important. Losing a member of an already small number due to being ill is not the way to succeed. Working in an environment that is happy and productive is the perfect place to work, regardless of what the job is.
Cohen, B. (2012). Population health promotion models and strategies. In L. Stamler & L. Yiu
Health promotion consists of all actions that encourage maximum spiritual, mental and physical functions despite of whether an individual is ill or well. Most of these plans are aimed at bringing positive lifestyle changes (Van Leuven, & Prion, 2007). A major core competency for all NPs is health promotion. Through regular screening, immunizations and counselling, NPs can guide their patients towards the goal of health promotion and disease prevention. As a future NP, my goal is to provide patient-centered, holistic care focusing on health promotion and sickness prevention. I also believe that an understanding of practice models like Pender’s Health Promotion Model will enable me to empower patients to obtain self-efficacy and behavior specific changes.
promotion programs using overall self-rated health as a common metric. Population Health Management, 13(2), 91-95. doi: 10.1089/pop.2009.0026
The negative effects of stress in the Canadian workplace and the resulting impact on the economy are on the rise. As a result, many companies have recognized the need for and benefits of providing programs which focus on employee wellness. This paper will discuss stress in the workplace by evaluating the employee wellness program/s of one healthcare provider company.
6). Workplace health promotion designed to improve lifestyle, and ultimately enhance health, the ability to function, and productivity (Rongen, Robroek, van Lenthe, & Burdorf, 2013, p. 406). Over the years, various theoretical models have evolved to “articulate variables involved in health behavior to predict participation and engage would be non-participants” (Galloway, 2003). Health Belief Model was one of the first theories of health behavior developed in 1950s by a group of social psychologists, who sought to explain what motivates public to participate in programs designed for wellness promotion and disease prevention (Nursing Theories, 2013). According to this model, preventative behaviors depend on the individuals’ beliefs, including their vulnerabilities to the disease, the effect of the disease on their lives, and the effect of health activities on reducing the disease severity and susceptibility (Sharafkhani, Khorsandi, Shamsi, & Ranjbaran, 2014, p.
Physical, emotional, intellectual, interpersonal, spiritual, and environmental wellness are all considered the six dimensions of wellness with occupational wellness being the possible seventh. But what are these exactly? And how do they apply to me and my health and wellness?
Methodology: The collection data primary and secondary sources were used. For primary data, some interviews were conducted with employees so that a detailed overview of the programs can be analyzed. Whereas, most of the work is based on secondary research for which the relevant websites of the companies, books, and journal articles were consulted. Identification of the most appropriate wellness plan