Employee Health Promotion Initiatives in Prevention of NCD’s

The 61st annual World Health Assembly is taking place this week in Geneva, Switzerland and at this assembly; the World Health Organization (WHO) is presenting its report titled “Preventing Non-communicable Diseases (NCD) in the Workplace through Diet and Physical Activity.”

The report calls for Employee Health Promotion Initiatives to be promoted and implemented worldwide.

Importance of Employee Health Promotion Initiatives

The report states that NCD related deaths have surpassed transferable disease related deaths and have become the leading global killers. Examples of NCD’s are heart disease, diabetes and stroke. In 2005, 60% of worldwide projected deaths were caused by non-communicable diseases. They are predicting that this health trend will continue through at least 2030.

Unhealthy diets, excessive caloric intake, lack of physical activity and tobacco use are the major risk factors in the cause of NCD’s. Now more than ever, the understanding of the importance of health and wellness is crucial.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives are Effective Tools

The report states that Employee Health Promotion Initiatives are found to be effective in improving health-related risk factors, such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes. The report also states that Employee Health Promotion Initiatives will improve the health of workers, improve the corporate image, improve staff member morale, reduce staff member absences and sick leave, increase staff member productivity, and reduce corporate healthcare costs.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Monitoring

Finally, the report mentions that to have a successful Employee Health Promotion Program, monitoring and evaluation through health risk assessments and health outcomes are essential and should be included in the Employee Health Promotion Program implementation. The evaluations ensure that the Employee Health Promotion Program developed meets the proper needs of the workers. Staff Members should be reevaluated on an on-going basis to make sure the Employee Health Promotion Program is still working, or to see if there are any adjustments that need to be made.

Corporate Wellness ROI: Fact or Fiction?

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives … do they offer a strong return on investment? This is a question that we are sure goes through ever corporation’s mind. HR Magazine addresses the corporate wellness ROI topic in their June 2008 issue.

Corporate Wellness ROI: The Bottom Line

According to the article, titled “Finding Wellness’ Return on Investment,” determining Corporate Wellness ROI is not an easy thing to do for businesses because it involves a lot of different variables and time.

However, the businesses that have taken the time to determine the Corporate Wellness ROI of their Employee Health Promotion Initiatives have found that it is quite significant. Not to mention, the Employee Health Promotion program’s effect on the improvement of staff member health and the slowing of the rate of their staff member healthcare costs.

Corporate Wellness ROI Alliance

Corporate Wellness ROI is such an important part of today’s corporate culture, that several large businesses have come together to form the Alliance for Wellness ROI, Inc. According to the HR Magazine article, The Alliance for Wellness ROI was specifically created to address the lack of consistency in proving the value of Employee Health Promotion Initiatives.

The alliance, formed by BMW of North America, Henry Ford Health System, Kraft Foods Global, MasterCard Worldwide and Schlumberger Limited, strongly believes in showing the value of Employee Health Promotion Initiatives and want to develop a standard for how Employee Health Promotion Initiatives are measured.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Components

According the alliance, the following components should make up an corporate-provided staff member Employee Health Promotion Program:

Disease Management Initiatives
Employee assistance Initiatives
Fitness and exercise Initiatives
Health risk assessments
On-Site healthcare Initiatives
Individual wellness profiles
Preventive health screenings and immunizations
Tobacco-cessation Initiatives
Telephone based wellness Initiatives
Weight loss and weight management Initiatives
Wellness educational opportunities and information
Self-Care Initiatives.

Health Promotion Increases during the Summer Time

Health Promotion is important year-round; however if your workers haven’t gotten on the Health Promotion bandwagon, then now is the perfect time to get them there.

Summer is an ideal season to get back into shape and improve overall Health Promotion. The weather is beautiful, workers can get outside and they are motivated by the thought of having to wear clothes with less coverage. Fitness, or lack of fitness, is apparent in the summer.

Health Promotion in the Summer has Advantages

There are many advantages to beginning a Employee Health Promotion Program in the summer. Employees are more likely to get outside and walk or participate in group activities during the summer than they are in the cooler months of the fall and winter. The summer months are also a great time to establish a Health Promotion challenge with your workers and celebrate the completion of the challenge with a participant picnic or cookout. Finally, it always seems easier to eat healthy during the summer with all the fresh vegetables and fruits that are available during this time.

Employee Health Promotion Program Kick-off

We recommend following these steps to getting a Employee Health Promotion Program started in your office.

Pick a coordinator for the Employee Health Promotion Program who is willing and able to see it through.
Make sure that you have the support of the corporate leadership.
Formulate a Health Promotion committee of leaders
Perform an Employee Health Promotion survey to uncover the obstacles and goals of your Employee Health Promotion Program
Establish a good beginning point through health risk assessments
Build the Employee Health Promotion Program that fits your goals
Constantly analyze the Employee Health Promotion Program and make improvements and adjustments as needed
Employee Health Promotion Initiatives offers Benefits
Remember to stress to workers that the Employee Health Promotion Program is for them. Employee Health Promotion Initiatives have been found to prevent obesity, cancer, heart disease and hypertension. Taking part in in a Employee Health Promotion Program that offers all that should be an easy decision for the corporation and for the workers.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives and Healthcare Costs

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives are important now more than ever. According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, with the troubles in the economy it seems that the costs of employer offered healthcare keep continuing to grow and it doesn’t seem like it is going to change. The article states that during the year 2008, U.S. businesses can expect to see an increase of 10% in healthcare costs.

This increase in healthcare costs is causing some small businesses to reduce their staff member health benefits or get rid of them altogether.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives for Healthier Lifestyles

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives do offer an option for small businesses. The corporations can offer discounted co-pays and deductibles to those workers that fully participate in the provided Employee Health Promotion Program. Full participation means getting health screens, receiving a health risk assessment, and then working with their wellness coordinator to work towards a healthier lifestyle.

The healthier the workers, the reduce the overall healthcare costs for the corporation. Just one lengthy hospital stay can almost deplete a small business’ healthcare budget.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives and Your Bottom Line

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives offer many advantages to a corporation’s bottom-line. Health Promotion Statistics from Prudential Insurance show a benefit expense of $312 per individual enrolled in a Employee Health Promotion Program compared to an expense of $574 per staff member that wasn’t enrolled. Coors Brewing Company showed a positive side-effect of participant absenteeism dropping by 18%, thus greater production and less healthcare costs overall.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Bring Healthier Bottom-lines

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives are a healthy investment, at least according to Lincoln industries in Nebraska. CNN reported on this 565 staff member corporation located in Lincoln, Nebraska and their serious and committed investment in their staff member’s wellness.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives are part of corporation Culture

The Employee Health Promotion Initiatives, according the story, has been in place for 16 years at Lincoln industries, and it doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. The corporation has three full-time workers dedicated to the Employee Health Promotion Program and the wellness of the workers, who receive workplace massages and a round of instructor-led stretching before they start their shifts.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Assessed

According to CNN, one of the stipulations of the Employee Health Promotion Program, which workers are not required to participate in, is that they receive quarterly checkups where assessments are completed on their weight, amount of body fat and flexibility. Based on these health assessments, the workers are then ranked from platinum all the way down to “non-medal”. To become platinum level, where you receive a corporation-paid climbing trip, you must achieve certain fitness levels and be a non-smoker. Smoking cessation classes are part of the Employee Health Promotion Program.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Bring Big Savings

The Employee Health Promotion Program has been a wise investment for Lincoln Industries. By having healthier workers, they have seen an average of $2 million in savings in healthcare costs per year. The savings don’t stop there, since instituting a Employee Health Promotion Program, workers’ compensation claims have gone from $500,000 per year down to less than $10,000 per year.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Becoming Popular

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives are becoming popular outside the workplace, showing the ever-increasing importance of disease prevention and health risk management. Private insurance businesses, as well as state Medicaid and Medicare offices are working on ways to improve the health of the people they insure in hopes to save money in the long run. They are finding that mini-Employee Health Promotion Initiatives are definitely the way to go.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Help with Early Intervention

According to an article that appeared in The Indianapolis Star, businesses, insurers and government agencies are turning to “early intervention to change the behavior of those struggling with common but dangerous health conditions, such as asthma, diabetes, heart failure and coronary heart disease.”

The tactics that they incorporate to improve their beneficiaries’ wellness postcard reminders for different lab tests or check-ups; and possibly even phone calls from nurses to work with the patients to make sure that they are taking their medicines properly and following the lifestyle changes that were suggested by their healthcare provider.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Offer Quality Benefits

There are more benefits to a Employee Health Promotion Program than just the cost savings that an employer or a state agency will see; there is the benefit to the actually patient. The patient is going to get the motivation and the incentive to get better or to manage their health and their health risks by having to answer to someone, whether that someone is a full-time wellness staff member at their corporation or a nurse affiliated with their insurance corporation.

<h2>Employee Health Promotion Initiatives offer Long-Term Benefits</h2>

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives, according to an article in Crain’s Detroit Business, come in two choices: Employee Health Promotion Initiatives or Medical Insurance products that aim to reduce costs if healthy habits are followed. Both options are a good choice, but only one will really offer long-term medical benefits for your workers and reduce costs over the years.

<h3>Employee Health Promotion Initiatives offer Assistance</h3>

Insurance-based products offer workers the opportunity, according to the article by Jay Green, to save money on their premiums if they follow certain steps, including performing an internet-based health assessment, visiting their doctor, and agree to adopt a healthy lifestyle. These plans usually involve one coach call to the staff member during the first 90 days. We wonder if these brief wellness encounters will actually change a individual’s lifestyle.

It is the overall change in a individual’s lifestyle, as well as disease prevention that will lead to reduce health costs in the future.

Employee Health Promotion Initiatives offer convenient health risk assessments and screening tests for things like diabetes, cholesterol and blood pressure. As the article states, these have initial start-up costs, but the savings accrue over time and workers are more likely to stay active in an onsite staff member Wellness Program.

<h3>Employee Health Promotion Initiatives Get Results</h3>

Finally, the article states that businesses with an effective Employee Health Promotion Program can expect to see “500 percent reduce absenteeism, 400 percent fewer disability claims, and 350 percent reduce healthcare costs.” These are numbers that are very hard to argue with.