Corporate Wellness Solutions
Corporate Wellness Programs Scottsdale AZ
With any business, large or small, the success and health of the company often relies heavily on the health of its employees. A worker’s well being is an important factor, contributing to a business’s profit and overall efficiency. Ultimately, poor employee health can negatively impact productivity as well as the overall operational costs of running a business.
Services Provided:
– Employee Wellness Programs
– Health Fair Services
– Wellness Program Incentives
– Corporate Wellness Solutions
– Fitness, Nutrition, Weight Loss Speaking & Article Writing
– Workplace Health Promotion
Clients:
According to a new survey by the National Business Group on Health, due to increasing health care benefit costs, large U.S. employers are planning to shift elevated health care costs to workers in 
the coming year. With recent economic developments and changes in U.S. financial policy, many businesses estimate their health care benefit costs will increase an average of 7.2 percent in 2012, more than twice the rate of inflation. In an effort to reduce such costs, many employers will be shifting increased health care expenses to their workers. While employees brace for heightened healthcare costs and reduced benefits, employers are looking to cost-mitigating strategies such as consumer driven health plans and wellness initiatives.
Employer-sponsored wellness programs focus on improving employee health and productivity, as well as the overall success of a company. These programs aim to improve the overall health and fitness of its employees through preventative measures, to reduce future health problems and an increase in health care costs.
Health education is key in terms of implementing an effective corporate wellness initiative. With the help of wellness educators and health-care professionals ranging from nutritionists, registered dieticians, and certified personal trainers, to physical therapists and physicians, employees have a valuable team of resources to help employees identify the necessary lifestyle changes that will reduce the effects of previous choices that have negatively impacted their health. By identifying the root of specific health issues, these professionals can help promote employee wellness on an individualized level, improving the health, productivity, corporate fitness and overall efficiency of a business and its employees.
Since each workforce has a different overall health profile, some business being more physically demanding than others etc., it’s critical to identify specific resources that are most important for augmenting employee health to reduce health care costs. This can be accomplished through creating an accurate depiction of a companies’ general workforce, overall employee health, and specific health risks unique to each line of work. For example, studies show that ‘desk job’ workers develop weight-related ailments, such as poor cardiovascular disease, at significantly higher rates than the individuals with more physically demanding jobs. Therefore, an office based wellness program would likely choose to incorporate fitness awareness programs and nutrition education initiatives.
When identifying what type of wellness program you need, you should ask yourself a series of questions:
o What are the demographics of my workforce?
o Are my employees typically on their feet most of the day, sitting at a cube or desk,
mobile and in the field, or a combination of the above?
o What does my company’s insurance claims data tell me about the chronic conditions my employees may have? Where are my employees particularly at risk?
o Are my employees in a setting with easy access to fresh food, walking trails, fitness facilities and other amenities?
o Do our facilities include a manufacturing plant, a biotech lab, a call center or any other work environment that requires special consideration?
To aid in this task, corporate wellness programs begin with health screenings. This is a health assessment to identify the health risks of individual employees’. We then analyze the results and provide each employee with a personalized intervention targeting specific health risks. This allows us to create an accurate employee health-profile to provide a foundation for wellness, as well as an opportunity to create actively engaged employees.
The second step in our corporate wellness program is a series of follow-ups to inform employees of their health risks. By increasing the availability of health, fitness and wellness resources, employees have the available toolsto access health facilities and take the first steps towards a healthier lifestyle.
Other services of our wellness program include one-on-one or group exercise training, personal counseling sessions, weight-loss support groups, nutritional intervention, and personalized health screening based an individual’s health history and specific clinical and lab testing. We help each individual to identify health risks, and advise them on how to reduce such risks.
The program holds each employee accountable and strives to motivate individuals to make positive changes. One way is through creating business-specific incentives that are at minimal or no cost to the company. Incentives go a long way in terms of generating interest in wellness and promoting employee adherence to specific programs. Proper incentives play an important role in keeping employees motivated, engaged and invested in wellness over time. Rewards tied to results rather than solely participation can also help promote a healthier employee base.
Corporate Wellness strives to reduce the cost of health care, promote a healthy work-life balance augment employee engagement in wellness. In any wellness program personal accountability is to ensuring success, therefore we strive to create wellness programs that revolve around individual accountability. To help achieve such qualities in our program we try to create a culture of wellness. Only when there is management ‘buy-in’ and participation the rest of the organization follow. It is also important to take a holistic approach to wellness.
It’s important to remember that ‘wellness’ involves every aspect of health, not only taking into consideration nutrition and exercise, but how employees budget for health care, cope with job-related stress, as well as their other health needs. It’s crucial that employers account for their employees’ emotional, social, physical and fiscal health when implementing any corporate wellness plan. While onsite workout facilities are excellent for an employee’s physical health, employers should also be aware of their employees’ family life, financial security, and other socio-economic and emotional pressures they each face. Ultimately, a healthier workforce means a happier workforce with greater productivity and performance at their jobs.
Wellness programs are most successful when the business and workers are fully engaged in the program with good health in mind. A successful workplace isn’t about the bottom line alone. It also means creating a safe and healthy workplace for each individual.
Corporate Wellness is Necessary
Corporate Wellness is among the most vital investments that a company can make. Businesses that start Corporate Wellness programs aren’t only investing in the physical wellness, safety, and mental health of their employees, but are also taking preventive measures by creating a healthier environment.
By starting a Corporate Wellness Solutions Program, corporations are able to improve the overall productivity and are able to save money on health care expenses. Often, corporations are concerned about the actual wellness ROI (return on investment) but the fact is that by encouraging healthier lifestyles, corporations are creating healthier employees who will work more diligently and miss fewer days of work due to illness.
It is imperative that companies not only provide Corporate Wellness solutions for their staff members, but that they also maintain ongoing knowledge about safety and wellness techniques. Businesses need to keep up to date on health statistics and stay aware of ways to encourage specific wellness issues like use of tobacco cessation or weight loss.
Although businesses may establish a comprehensive Corporate Wellness program with many options, an incentive Corporate Wellness program is often necessary for encourage employees to actually participate in the programs.
Whether one is creating corporate wellness in Phoenix or a corporate wellness small-town of Wickenburg program, the issue that companies often have in common, is the lack of motivation of employees to actually participate in corporate wellness programs. Providing incentives for employees, such as a free lunch or gift cards, may be simple enough rewards to encourage employees to participate in.
Health Risk Assessment
A typical health risk assessment has four standard elements in a worksite wellness program:
o An individual lifestyle questionnaire to be completed by participants
o A electronic program to evaluate the data
o Confidential individual reports
o A group summary report of the aggregate assessment data
During health risk assessment a person completes a lifestyle questionnaire that asks about nutrition practices, height & weight, physical activity and exercise habits, family health history, personal stress perceptions, smoking history, and work satisfaction. Another important feature to consider is readiness to change questions to determine participation interest. Note: employee interest surveys are another way that organizations can evaluate possible employee participation in proposed wellness programs.
Including employee health screenings such as cholesterol and blood pressure (BP) results increases the advantages of a health risk assessment by providing a more precise health assessment and accordingly bettering lifestyle option decisions and program choices.
The lifestyle questionnaire information is gathered and an individual confidential report is generated that summarizes health risks in addition to information on how to lower risk factors.
Individual reports are completely confidential. Depending on the reason for beginning the health risk assessment, it’s important to consider the type of report the corporation will receive as well.
Another component of the health risk assessment process is a group report summarizing major risk factors and recommendations for wellness programs to implement that will reduce employee and business risks. This report provides valuable information for your health promotion program and essentially becomes your roadmap for employee intervention.
Health Risk Assessment Data:
The health risk assessment may be used to:
o Bring awareness to individual staff member’s health status
o Motivate employees to make healthier lifestyle changes
o To assign a Personal Trainer to the high-risk employees
o Plan health promotion programs based on the identified needs
o Measure program success by comparing the data from one year to the next.
Wellness Program Ideas
o Conduct a Staff Member Needs and Interest Survey
o Create a management/employee Health Promotion Committee
o Choose medical programs that cover costs for weight control
o Waive co-pay or reimburse for preventive healthcare visits
o Display pamphlets on a selection of wellness topics for employees to take
o Establish a wellness resource center or library with videos, books, magazines, DVD’s on a selection of topics of interest to employees
o Identify staff members who are mentors or champions for healthy activities and ask them to present or to list as a contact for other employees
o Plan and promote periodic or regular educational sessions.
o Plan monthly educational sessions on the national health observance topic
o Post a Wellness Bulletin Board and update it monthly
o Promote messages from national health observances during the month
o Publish and/or post healthful tips in newsletters, paycheck stuffers, bulletin boards, etc.
o Sponsor a benefits fair
o Sponsor organization fitness and healthy eating challenges
o Sponsor corporation wellness fairs or other onsite events
Nutrition Programs
o Give free, healthful snacks for staff members
o Have employees work a Registered Dietician on Personal Trainer to develop custom meal plans and healthy lunches to bring to work.
o Encourage employees to eat breakfast or provide breakfast options
o Provide healthful meal choices in cafeterias, corporation events, meetings, and business dinners
o Give information to personnel about the nutritional content of food served in the cafeteria, in-house restaurants, or nearby restaurants
o Start a fresh fruit “snack basket” in the break room or cafeteria
o Stock vending machines with healthier choices
o Coordinate a weekly or monthly healthy lunch club
o Have flyers available on a selection of healthy eating topics
o Include nutrition articles in company’s newsletters
o Schedule a healthful food tasting contest
o Schedule educational sessions at lunch-time on a selection of nutrition topics of interest: “Lunch’n’Learn”
Weight Loss Programs / Weight Management Programs
o Consider flexible work schedules so that workers can participate in weight-loss programs
o Subsidize registration costs for weight-management programs
o Form a support group to help staff who are attempting to lose weight
o Locate registered dieticians near your worksite as a resource for staff members who want information on healthy consuming, meal planning or weight control
o Give individual counseling for staff trying to lose weight
o Offer onsite fitness and weight-management programs through your local hospital, Weight Watchers, TOPS or local, registered dietician
Exercise Programs
o Allow flexible work schedules to encourage exercise
o Develop a fitness space with aerobic equipment, and weights
o Develop accessible walking paths, trails, and/or bicycle routes
o Make sure to encourage workers to walk more by parking farther away from the entrance
o Establish a fitness club with aerobic equipment, weights, group exercise classes, fitness professionals
o Hold walking meetings
o Make available reduced fitness club membership fees to all personnel
o Schedule stretch breaks during the day
o Subsidize gym membership for employees who participate a minimal number of days per week (ex., 3 days per week)
o Support lunchtime walking/running clubs or company sports team
o Make certain to encourage stairwell use and incentives
o Promote and support community walks or fitness events
o Promote walking during breaks and other off-time periods
o Provide periodic fitness incentive programs to encourage exercise
o Schedule educational sessions or fitness activities
Use of Tobacco Cessation Programs / Smoking Cessation Programs
o Give pamphlets and information on health effects from use of tobacco and tobacco cessation
o Schedule awareness sessions to motivate personnel to try to quit tobacco use
o Schedule onsite smoking workshops
Staff Member Medical Screening
o Discount medical insurance premiums or reduce co-payments for workforce who take part in screenings and who take part in managing their risk factors
o Offer flu shots for personnel and family members
o Provide periodic blood pressure screenings and follow-up
o Make available periodic screenings for cholesterol, blood sugar, body composition, etc.
o Bring in a Registered Nurse or Dietician once a month to read lab work and give suggestions for lowering blood pressure and cholesterol
Stress Management Programs / Work & Life Balance Programs
o Allow flexible schedules for family/work life balance
o Make available and promote an worker assistance program
o Give information on substance abuse prevention
o Provide flyers and information on stress management and psychological health
o Provide handouts and information on work life balance, such as financial planning, childcare, parenting, elder care, etc.
o Provide supervisor and manager training on communication, relationship building, organizational stressors, etc.
o Review company policies and work schedules to identify organizational stressors
o Review the worker assistance program to ensure it’s meeting the needs of the staff members and company
o Schedule educational sessions on stress management and work life balance
o Schedule workshops on relaxation, stress management, and work life balance topics
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