Posts from — October 2008

Establishing a Worksite Wellness Program need not be costly, but will require the commitment of some financial resources. If possible, include the Worksite Wellness Program in your organization’s annual business plan and budget as you do for other efforts important to your organization’s success.

How much to budget for the Corporate Wellness Program?

There is no one-size-fits-all formula for establishing a Worksite Wellness Program that results in enhanced employee health. Organizations differ in how much money they need and how much they can make available for the Corporate Wellness Program. Consider the following common expenses in developing an adequate Worksite Wellness Program budget:

• Worksite Wellness Program staffing costs (either internal salaries or consultant fees)
• Worksite Wellness Program data collection costs (including health risk assessment costs, if relevant)
• Worksite Wellness Program incentives and rewards for healthy behaviors (such as discounts on premiums for non-smokers)
• Costs of Worksite Wellness Program Strategies to be implemented (such as costs of covering tobacco quit medications or costs of subsidizing healthy foods in the cafeteria or vending machines)
• Worksite Wellness Program administrative and communications expenses

In times of tight finances, be prepared to justify your requested Worksite Wellness Program budget. Arm yourself with data on potential short- and long-term outcomes of the proposed Worksite Wellness Program Strategies. Itemize the Worksite Wellness Program expenses of past initiatives and share projected expenses for initiatives planned for the upcoming year.

Sustaining Worksite Wellness Program Funding

A dedicated Worksite Wellness Program line item in your organization’s budget makes it more likely to be regarded as a need, rather than as a “nice-to-have” amenity that could be cut when funds run low.

One of the best Strategies for ensuring continued financial support for the Worksite Wellness Program is frequent communication to upper management, including:

• How many workers have you reached through the Corporate Wellness Program? Has morale improved? Have health risks decreased, e.g., fewer workers smoking, more workers active?
• How well are you managing the Worksite Wellness Program resources you’ve been given? Where and how has your budget been spent? Keep track of the staff time necessary for each initiative and be able to present the numbers at any time.
• Anecdotal Worksite Wellness Program success stories from workers. Don’t underestimate the power of a good story to put a human face on your success.

Supplemental sources of Worksite Wellness Program Funding

If necessary, have the individuals accountable for establishing a Worksite Wellness Program look for ways to supplement available internal funds. Are there grants or other financing available that can help support your Worksite Wellness Program ? What community Worksite Wellness Program resources could you use to meet some of your needs?

Finding an individual to guide your organization in establishing a Worksite Wellness Program

Without a qualified Worksite Wellness Program coordinator to guide and manage your organization’s creation of a culture of wellness, efforts can be scattered and momentum can stall. While it’s essential that the creation of a culture of wellness be someone’s priority, not all organizations need a full-time coordinator.  There are a number of ways to obtain the time of a qualified coordinator.

Be careful not to confuse Worksite Wellness Program skills with fitness skills. You are not looking for a personal trainer or a nutritionist to run your Corporate Wellness Program. The following are good indications that an individual may be qualified to be a Worksite Wellness Program coordinator:

• knowledge of population health, community health and worksite Corporate Wellness Programs
• competent working with and understanding aggregate data, preferably Worksite Wellness Program data
• competent managing projects, including developing timelines and facilitating meetings
• competent in strategic planning, including defining goals and related objectives
• ability to understand, and use the findings of, journal articles on effective Worksite Wellness Program Strategies.

What will a Worksite Wellness Program coordinator do?

The Worksite Wellness Program coordinator is accountable for guiding a process that establishes workplace facilities, policies and practices that promote health. The individual may do some of all of the following for your Corporate Wellness Program:

• act as a liaison between upper management and the Worksite Wellness Program employee advisory workgroup
• interpret health-related data on your Worksite Wellness Program
• establishe and manage work plans and budgets for implementation of selected Worksite Wellness Program Strategies
• facilitate Corporate Wellness Program Committee meetings
• guide your organization in determining measurable objectives for the Worksite Wellness Program
• recommend effective Worksite Wellness Program Strategies, using the evidence in the health behavior literature and national and/or recommended best practices
• document and report short-term and long-term progress on Worksite Wellness Program Strategies and objectives.

Where can we find a qualified Worksite Wellness Program coordinator?

Explore the following when looking for a Worksite Wellness Program coordinator:

• Existing employees: Are there individuals on employees who have the background, or are interested in gaining the skills, to support as a Worksite Wellness Program coordinator? Is it possible to dedicate a portion of someone’s time (e.g., .5 FTE) to the position of coordinating your organization’s Worksite Wellness Program Strategies? If possible, budget enough to cover not only salary but also continued learning, journal subscriptions and membership fees for this Worksite Wellness Program position.
• New employees - Can you hire an individual to be your organization’s Worksite Wellness Program coordinator? Would it need to be a full-time position, or would part-time be sufficient?
• Worksite Wellness Program Consultation - Various organizations (e.g., health plans, benefit consultants and public health departments) provide Worksite Wellness Program consultation on building a culture of wellness within a workplace.

An outside Worksite Wellness Program consultant can advise an internal Worksite Wellness Program coordinator and your Corporate Wellness Program Committee on determining priorities and deciding on Strategies. Or, you can contract with a Worksite Wellness Program consultant to be your coordinator. If you select the latter approach, you’ll want to contract with the individual for sufficient hours to carry out all of the responsibilities associated with coordinating an effective strategy.

Strong and visible upper management support for the Worksite Wellness Program promotes health and is essential to securing necessary Worksite Wellness Program resources (staff, time, and money) and implementing recommended changes.

1. Establish a Worksite Wellness Program champion

In a small organization, there may be a single leader who is the clear choice to champion the Corporate Wellness Program. In a larger organization, look for an executive with the authority to sway others in the uppermost levels of the organization regarding the Corporate Wellness Program. The Worksite Wellness Program champion need not be the fittest member of upper management. Rather, look for a Worksite Wellness Program leader with the disposition to be a visible and vocal supporter of workplace policies that encourage healthy behaviors. Organizations with multiple sites can consider whether it would be useful to have an executive Worksite Wellness Program champion at each site.

2. Find existing Worksite Wellness Program allies

There may already be a number of individuals within your organization who recognize the value of a Corporate Wellness Program. Think about who those individuals are in your organization; consider areas such as occupational safety, union representatives, risk management, medical officers, and human resources when looking for a Worksite Wellness Program ally. Gain their stated support for the Corporate Wellness Program. Worksite Wellness Program support could include contributions of staff time or expertise, financial resources, agreement to endorse/support policy and environmental changes, or agreement to participate in, and voice their support for, changes in the workplace that will help to build a culture of wellness.

3. Build a business case for the Worksite Wellness Program

There is a reason that more and more companies are finding a way to promote the health of the employees via a Worksite Wellness Program and policies: A Worksite Wellness Program makes good business sense. workers with healthy behaviors, on average, are more productive when at work (higher presenteeism)1 and incur lower healthcare costs than workers with less healthy behaviors.2,3  As a result it would be foolish not to have a Corporate Wellness Program.

4. When developing a Worksite Wellness Program use what you know about leadership styles and the decision-making process within your organization

Every organization is different. Build upper management support for the Worksite Wellness Program in the way that makes the most sense for your organization. Think about the following as you plan how to approach upper management for Worksite Wellness Program support:

• What are the current pressures and priorities facing executives? How could a Worksite Wellness Program and a healthier workforce support those priorities?
• How do your leaders rather receive data: written documents? verbal presentations?
• What kinds of Worksite Wellness Program information are likely to sway decisions? Do they want data and Worksite Wellness Program statistics specific to your organization, or are state or national data sufficient? Are your leaders more influenced by internal factors or by what competitors are doing?
• Who would your leaders see as a reliable messenger for this Worksite Wellness Program information? Does someone from the risk management area carry more clout than someone from the human resources area?
• How do decisions get made in your organization? Informal committee meetings? Formal or informal meetings between executives? Plan accordingly and you improve the odds that the Worksite Wellness Program will become a reality.

5. Maintain Worksite Wellness Program support once you have it

Once you have appropriate Worksite Wellness Program support, ensure that you maintain it by regularly updating your leaders on the health of the employees and progress toward establishing a culture that promotes health. Ask upper management how frequently they want to receive Worksite Wellness Program progress reports.

Source Information:
1 Bunn, JOEM, 2006, 48:10.
2 Foldes, Bland, An et al. Modifiable Health Risks and Short-Term Health Care Costs. BC/BS of Minnesota internal research, submitted for publication.
3 Anderson, 2000, American Journal of Health Promotion, 15:1.

The workplace setting is a powerful, but frequently overlooked, element in managing worker health.  Here we will establish some of the best-practices in establishing a Worksite Wellness Program that supports your organization’s employee health strategy and allows workers to take charge of their own health.  For example, a Worksite Wellness Program that includes a tobacco-free workplace policy improves the likelihood that workers will try to quit smoking and will quit smoking successfully. Similarly, a Worksite Wellness Program that includes discounting healthy foods in your cafeteria and vending machines helps raise workers’ consumption of healthy foods which supports your investment in disease management programs for workers with diabetes, heart disease or hypertension. The following will guide you through the ten key steps in establishing a Worksite Wellness Program and workplace setting that promotes worker health.

In an era of increasing healthcare costs and intense competition, companies have a vested interest in the health of their workers.  Studies have found that, on average, workers with healthy behaviors (such as not smoking or being active for 30 minutes a day) incur lower healthcare expenses, are absent from work less frequently, and are more productive when at work (higher presenteeism) than workers with unhealthy behaviors.

Corporate Wellness Program: Getting Leadership Support

Worksite Wellness Program support from the uppermost level of upper management is essential to your success in establishing a culture of wellness within your workplace. Look for Worksite Wellness Program support from a leader who is respected by and can sway other leaders. (It’s not important that he or she be the fittest executive within your organization just that they directly support the Corporate Wellness Program.) You will be relying on this culture-of-health champion to advocate for changes that you recommend and to ensure the organization allocates adequate Worksite Wellness Program resources (staff, time, and money) to maintain and enhance the workplace policies, physical setting, and social norms.

Gain Worksite Wellness Program Staff and Budget

Starting and maintaining a Worksite Wellness Program within your organization needs to be someone’s priority. However, unless your organization is quite large, you likely don’t need to hire a full-time staff person for the Corporate Wellness Program.  There are a number of ways to find an individual with the necessary skills to guide and support your organization’s Corporate Wellness Program.

Establishing facilities and Worksite Wellness Program policies, such as those allowing workers to be physically active during the workday, does not need to be costly, but it does require adequate and sustained financing.  If possible, include the creation of a workplace setting that supports the Worksite Wellness Program as a permanent part of the operating budget; that helps to ensure it’s an ongoing priority for your organization.

Staff Member Involvement in the Worksite Wellness Program

Pulling together a representative group of workers to advise your organization’s Worksite Wellness Program ensures that improvements in workplace facilities, policies and practices address the true needs and obstacles of all groups of workers.   In addition, these workers can support as the front-line Worksite Wellness Program supporters of policies and practices with their peers.

Create a Worksite Wellness Program “Brand” and Vision

A Worksite Wellness Program vision and a brand are powerful first steps in moving a Worksite Wellness Program from an idea to a reality. What would you like your workplace environment to look like five years from now? A succinct Worksite Wellness Program vision statement summarizes for all (workers and leaders alike) the reasons for establishing a Corporate Wellness Program. It also reminds everyone of the link between worker health and your organization’s ability to achieve its overall mission.

Branding your organization’s Worksite Wellness Program conveys to workers that the organization’s commitment and support of healthy behaviors is important and is here to stay. Choose a Worksite Wellness Program name and logo that resonate with workers. Then use that brand on all Worksite Wellness Program communications with workers about the policies, facilities and programs your organization offers to promote healthy behaviors.

Assess Your Existing Worksite Wellness Program Situation

Exactly how your organization establishes a Worksite Wellness Program that promotes healthy eating, physical activity, and reduces tobacco use will depend on the unique characteristics of your organization and employee population.

Assess how the current workplace facilities, policies, and unwritten norms support — or discourage — healthy behaviors.

Gather information on the health and health-related behaviors of your employee population.  The most common method is by using a validated health risk assessment. If you don’t have data specific to your workers, you can estimate the prevalence of different health risks and behaviors within your employee population using state or national data.  Note: Information on workers’ health interests alone is not sufficient; but can be a useful supplement to health risk data and might help you set priorities.

Determine Worksite Wellness Program Goals and Priorities

Use what you’ve discovered about the health of the employees and about your current workplace setting to determine your organization’s Worksite Wellness Program priorities. From those Worksite Wellness Program priorities, define clear and measurable Worksite Wellness Program objectives for improving the health of the employees and your organization’s culture. Well written objectives will provide the basis for planning and for measuring your progress.

Choose Worksite Wellness Program Strategies

Focus your organization’s Worksite Wellness Program resources (time, energy and money) on procedures that are most likely to produce results:  a rise in healthy eating, a rise in physical activity, and a reduction in tobacco use. There’s no need to guess at what might work. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reviewed thousands of research studies and has identified the Worksite Wellness Program approaches most likely to result in significant, lasting, and widespread improvements in health behaviors. Those Worksite Wellness Program procedures are included in the physical activity, tobacco, and healthy eating sections of this website.

The formula for Worksite Wellness Program success is to make the healthier choices the easier choices.

Implement Worksite Wellness Program Strategies

Once you’ve chosen your Worksite Wellness Program Strategies, it can be useful to arrange the work on a timeline.  The “right” amount of time for implementing each Worksite Wellness Program strategy depends on the staff time, budget, and business demands of your organization.  Work plans maintain your efforts moving and help to ensure that plans to create a Worksite Wellness Program stay on track even if there are changes in staffing or other challenges.

Communicate and Educate About the Worksite Wellness Program

Ensure workers are aware of the Worksite Wellness Program opportunities you’ve provided.   Planning your Worksite Wellness Program communications allows you to communicate regularly with workers without overwhelming them at any one time.

Monitor and Report Your Worksite Wellness Program Results

At the same time that you plan your Worksite Wellness Program Strategies, think about how you’ll measure success.  It’s much easier to gather information – or to create systems for collecting information — before you begin a Worksite Wellness Program strategy rather than as an afterthought.   Keep in mind that you’re likely to see improvements in worker morale and/or behaviors before you see decreases in absenteeism or healthcare claims.

Report both your Worksite Wellness Program successes in building a healthy workplace environment (such as complete implementation of a policy that provides workers time for walking during the workday), and Worksite Wellness Program successes in getting workers to take charge of their health (a rise in the number of workers who contacted the stop-smoking program, or a rise in the number of fruit-cups purchased from the cafeteria following a promotion and price-cut).