Posts from — October 2008

(Adapted from The Health Promotion First Act prepared by David Anderson, Ph.D., StayWell Health Management)

Worker Lifestyles Impact Worker Health

•    Approximately 40 percent of all deaths in the U.S. are premature (at least 900,000 deaths each year) and are due to unhealthy lifestyle choices such as tobacco use, poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, misuse of alcohol and drugs, and accidents. Other contributors to early death include genetic predisposition (30 percent), social circumstances (15 percent), poor access to quality health care (10 percent), and environmental  exposures (5 percent).
•    Unhealthy lifestyle is the primary contributor to the six leading causes of death in the U.S. – heart disease, cancer, stroke, respiratory diseases, accidents, and diabetes – which collectively account for over 70 percent of all deaths.
•    People with healthier lifestyles live an average of 6 to 9 years longer,  postpone disability by 9 years and compress disability into fewer years at the end of life.
•    The prevalence of obesity among American adults rose to 30 percent in 1999-2000, a 33 percent increase from a decade earlier,  and the prevalence of diabetes also rose by 33 percent during approximately the same period (1990 to 1998).
•    About two-thirds of American adults are overweight or obese, 55 percent do not get enough physical activity,  26 percent are completely inactive,10 and only 25 percent eat recommended amounts of fruit and vegetables  If diet/physical activity patterns continue worsening at their current rate, these behaviors will soon surpass tobacco use as contributors to mortality.
•    Among young people, the prevalence of overweight has more than quadrupled in the past 20 years to 16 percent,  daily participation in high school physical education classes has dropped from 42 percent in 1991 to 28 percent in 2003,  more than 60 percent eat too much saturated fat, and almost 80 percent do not eat recommended amounts of fruit and vegetables.
•    Lifestyle diseases disproportionately affect women, racial and ethnic minorities, the poor and seniors:
•    The prevalence of diabetes among African Americans is about 70 percent higher than among white Americans, and the prevalence among Hispanics is nearly double that for white Americans.
•    Women comprise more than 50% of the people who die each year of cardiovascular disease.
•    Chronic conditions significantly limit daily activity for 35 percent of persons over 65 years of age.

Financial Impact of Lifestyle
•    It is estimated that lifestyle-related chronic diseases account for 70 percent of the nation’s health care costs, which translates to over 11 percent of the entire U.S. gross domestic product.
•    Two broad-based scientific reviews identified 83 peer-reviewed studies reporting that people with unhealthy habits have higher health costs.
•    Research conservatively estimates that high health risks (high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, etc) account for at least 25 percent of total health costs.
•    Recent research indicates a direct relationship between modifiable lifestyle risks and lower worker productivity, and relevant data suggest that the costs to corporations in lost productivity due to poor employee health may be substantially more than the direct health and disability costs.
•    Unhealthy lifestyles often lead to chronic disease, many of which cannot be cured and require years or decades of expensive treatments. Below are estimated annual costs of selected unhealthy lifestyles and chronic diseases including obesity,  smoking,  hypertension,  diabetes,  stress,  and inactivity.

Corporate Health Promotion Programs Improve Health and Yield Major Savings
•    Comprehensive scientific reviews identified 378 peer-reviewed studies showing that Corporate Health Promotion Programs improve health knowledge, health behaviors, and underlying health conditions.
•    Research studies have demonstrated that lifestyle modification may often be more effective and cost-effective than health intervention in reducing morbidity  and mortality.
•    Several scientific reviews indicate that Corporate Health Promotion Programs reduce health costs and rates of absenteeism and produce a positive return on investment.  The most definitive review of financial impact reported that:
•    18 studies indicated that these Corporate Health Promotion Programs reduce health costs, and 14 studies indicated that they decrease rates of absenteeism costs.
•    13 studies that calculated benefit/cost ratios all showed the savings from these Corporate Health Promotion Programs are much greater than their cost, with health cost savings averaging $3.48 and the rates of absenteeism savings averaging $5.82 per dollar invested in the Corporate Health Promotion Programs.
•    Medical costs are expected to exceed 16 percent of U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) in 2005 and to grow at 7.2 percent each year through 2015, when health expenditures will account for 20 percent of GDP:
•    Per capita health costs in the U.S. are the highest in the world and more than double the median for OECD nations,  yet the U.S. ranks 26th in terms of healthy life expectancy.
•    Medicaid is the second largest item in the majority of state budgets, and its portion of the total budgets is increasing each year.
•    Increasing health costs for U.S. corporations continue to outpace general inflation, averaging 12 percent per year for the past 10 years.   This trend is causing a tremendous financial hardship on U.S. corporations.

1. Senior management involvement in the Corporate Health Promotion Program- Evidence of enthusiastic commitment and involvement of senior management helps employees understand their corporations’ serious commitment to health.  Workers need to perceive that their senior management, supervisors, and coworkers have positive attitudes toward health since these factors have all been associated with enhanced employee health status.   Management-related factors have been shown to contribute more to success than the content of the intervention.

2. Participatory planning - A Wellness Program should be undertaken in partnership with the workforce.  Workers from all levels of staff should be actively engaged in the health and management aspects of the project as well as all on-going processes of any Corporate Health Promotion Program.  Planning must also include processes for maintaining communication with all staff and building their commitment to the process.   Creating Wellness Program steering committees to guide interventions during the planning and delivery of workplace health promotion programming improves worker awareness, participation, and satisfaction. Worker committees can identify perceived employee interests regarding educational programming, determine work site-specific characteristics that may affect the intervention or influence participation, and suggest the best methods for promotion and delivery of Corporate Health Promotion Programs and initiatives.  Ways to maximize employee input and involvement might include interest surveys, focus groups, and peer counsellors.

3. Primary focus on employees’ needs - A Wellness Program should meet the needs of all employees, regardless of their current level of health and recognize the needs, preferences, and attitudes of different groups of participants. Program designers should consider the major health risks in the target population, the specific risks within the particular group of employees, and the corporation’s needs.   In other words, interventions should be tailor-made to the characteristics and needs of the recipients.   This means that varied programs must be offered at different levels.   Participation and commitment can be increased if a group of staff members has the opportunity to address a specific modifiable risk factor of their choice.

4. Optimal use of on-site resources - Planning and implementation of Corporate Health Promotion Programs should optimize use of on-site personnel, physical resources, and organizational capabilities.   For example, whenever possible, initiatives should use on-site health and safety, management, work organization, communication, Human Resources, and other specialists.   Well-qualified external leadership may be introduced when in-house expertise is lacking.

5. Integration - An overall workplace health policy should be developed.  The policies governing employee health must align with the company mission, vision, and values, supporting both short- and long-term goals. These consistent policies must affirm the value of employee health and a commitment to engage employees in health enhancement.  Wellness Program Procedures should be integrated into a company’s regular management practices and eventually should be formally incorporated into the company’s corporate plan  with adequate resources attached to them.

6. Recognition that a person’s health is determined by an interdependent set of factors - Any Wellness Program must address multiple components of an individual’s life:
•    the workplace physical and psychosocial environment;
•    their personal resources such as social support, sense of empowerment, etc.; and
•    their lifestyle practices influencing health.

7. Tailoring to the special features of each workplace environment  - Corporate Health Promotion Programs must be responsive to the unique needs of each workplace’s procedures, organization and culture.   Integrating health behaviors and program participation into the existing company culture will normalize program participation.

8. Wellness Program Assessment - Project management should flow through needs analysis, establishing priorities, planning, implementation, continuous monitoring, and evaluation.   Assessment must include a clearly-defined range of process measures and outcomes  as well as mechanisms for monitoring the impact of non-intervention workplace changes such as plant closure, major workplace re-organization, and new technology on staff health.

9. Long-term commitment - To sustain the benefits of the Corporate Health Promotion Program, the worksite must continue the initiative over time, reinforcing risk-reduction behaviours and adapting the programs to ongoing personal, social, economic, and workplace changes.

Introduction to Corporate Health Promotion Programs

Risky health behaviors by employees cost a company. Changing those behaviors can save the employer money and increase the employee’s productivity.

Because work gives an employee a stable environment and support system, Corporate Health Promotion Programs can have a great impact on reducing high-risk behaviors. This impact results in decrease health claims cost, less rates of absenteeism, and less short-term disability.

Corporate Health Promotion Programs can include:

Awareness Rasing Programs: Health and wellness newsletters, health topics covered in payroll stuffers, healthy emails.

Health Risk Assessment: Employee health screenings, health and wellness fairs, health rist assessments.

Educational Programs: Lunch and Learn wellness presentations, guest speakers at staff meetings.

Skill Building: Healthy cooking demostrations, activity challenges, CPR instruction opportunites, stress management classes, weight management classes.

Interventions: Massage, smoking cessation, and skills to help you get the most out of your doctor visit.

Physical environment: Healthy items in the vending machines and cafeterias, clean air practices, ergonomics, bike racks, flex time, welllit stairways.

Assessment: Worker needs assessment, baseline Wellness Program evaluation measures, ongoing Wellness Program evaluation of overall effectiveness.

Why Offer Corporate Health Promotion Programs

The typical employer spends about $8,000 a year on an employee’s health care. This includes medical insurance, disability and worker’s compensation. As these costs climb, medical insurance is expected to rise at least 10 percent per year.

A 1999 research study showed that corporations using Corporate Health Promotion Programs had a return on investment from $1.49 – $13 in benefits per dollar spent. The amount depended on the nature of the Corporate Health Promotion Programs used. (S. Aldana, American Journal of Wellness, 2001; 15:296-320)

One research study showed that a “stop smoking” element to Corporate Health Promotion Programs can save between $404 -$40,829 per employee, depending on the age and sex of the employee.

The Corporate Health Promotion Programs at Traveler’s Company included a self-care book, a newsletter, single-topic brochures, and videotapes. The Corporate Health Promotion Programs saved the company $7.8 million in employee benefi t costs, decreased doctor visits, and it lowered rates of absenteeism by 1.2 days per employee per year. The estimated Corporate Health Promotion Programs ROI was $3.40 per dollar spent.

In 1998, the Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO) reported a study of 46,026 employees from six large corporations for three years. Workers with an inactive lifestyle had 10 percent higher costs; employees with depression had 70 percent higher costs.

Benefits of Corporate Health Promotion Programs

Increased Productivity - The Canada Life Assurance Company realized a 4 percent increase in productivity after establishing an employee fitness program.

Increased Job Satisfaction - According to employee opinion surveys conducted by the Silverstone Group about thier Corporate Health Promotion Programs, employees’ morale increased, which helped support a more creative work environment.

Enhanced Recruitment & Retention - In the midst of a tight labor market, Corporate Health Promotion Programs could be a vital tool to draw new recruits.

Decreased Absenteeism - Canada Life Assurance Company’s rates of absenteeism dropped 42 percent among employees in the Corporate Health Promotion Programs.

Decreased Workers Comp & Disability - In one year, Boeing Company’s number of back injuries decreased by 34 percent. Six million dollars was saved by tracking injuries as they occurred.

Managed Health Care Costs - Golden, Colorado Adolf Coors Company’s Corporate Health Promotion Programs returned $6.19 for every dollar spent.

Why have Wellness Program goals?

Wellness Program goals take your corporation’s priorities for employee health improvement and make them specific and measurable. Well-defined Wellness Program goals provide direction for determining Procedures and a basis for which to measure progress.

Writing Wellness Program goals

Writing Wellness Program goals is not complicated or difficult. It does require some thought, about your corporation’s Wellness Program vision for a culture of health and they should be:

Specific Wellness Program Goals
Measurable Wellness Program Goals
Attainable Wellness Program Goals
Realistic Wellness Program Goals
Timely Wellness Program Goals

Specific Wellness Program Goals: What is the specific outcome your corporation is looking for? “Reduce smoking among employees” is more specific than “Improve the health of employees.” You may wish to write some goals about specific outcomes (reducing smoking among employees) and other goals about specific progress (implementing a tobacco-free campus policy or reducing the price of fresh fruit in the cafeteria to 25 cents a piece).

Measurable Wellness Program Goals: Making your goals measurable provides a means of evaluating your progress and success. There is a saying: “what gets measured, gets done.” Goals which are measurable can be effective motivators for your corporation. “Provide more time for employees to be physically active” is much less measurable than “implement a daily 15-minute walking break into the schedule of all employees.” “Increase the number of employees who want to quit smoking” is less measurable than “increase enrollments in the stop-using tobacco program to 120 employees per year.”

Attainable Wellness Program Goals: Establish goals that challenge your corporation to change and that will demonstrate a real commitment to employee health. At the same time, set goals that are achievable. Goals that are set too far out of reach can be overwhelming and may become a barrier rather than a motivator.

Realistic Wellness Program Goals: Write goals that are do-able, given the skills, time, finances and overall strategy of the corporation. A realistic project may push the skills and knowledge of the people working on it but it shouldn’t break them.

Timely Wellness Program Goals: When do you hope to achieve the goal? Next week? Next year? Without a timeframe, the goal is still not clear and is much less likely to galvanize resources and energy within your corporation.

“Reduce the percent of employees who use tobacco from 20 percent to 10 percent” is much less of a challenge than “By the end of 2010, reduce the percent of employees who use tobacco from 20 percent to 15 percent”.

If your corporation is interested in measuring the impact of your Wellness Program efforts in future years, you’ll want to gather relevant baseline data on the health and health behaviors of your employee population.

Wellness Program Data on your employee population

Health Risk Assessments / Health Risk Appraisals

Some health plans offer corporations free internet-based Health Risk Assessments / Health Risk Appraisals, complete with summary aggregate reports. If your health plan does not offer a free HRA, you could pay for an HRA either through your health plan or through a third party vendor.

To encourage participating in an HRA, assure employees of confidentiality and consider offering incentives and rewards for completing the assessment. The higher the participation rate, the more likely that the aggregate data will accurately represent the behaviors and risks of your employee population.

Wellness Program Health Surveys

You can get a general sense of employees’ health-related attitudes and behaviors using a “lowtech” paper survey. As with a health risk assessment, employees will be more likely to respond to a survey if there is an incentive and if they are confident that their responses are confidential. Remember that without widespread participation you’ll only get a “feel” for employee behaviors rather than a statistically accurate picture.

Wellness Program Focus Groups and Informational Interviews

The information you can collect from focus groups or informational interviews with employees is an important supplement to the anonymous survey or HRA data. Listening to employees discuss their attitudes, values, receptivity and obstacles related to health provides a wealth of information on which to base decisions on how to increase your corporation’s Corporate Health Promotion Program. Wellness Program focus groups are especially useful for capturing information from hard-to-reach employee populations, such as those for whom English is a learned language.

Keep Wellness Program focus groups small (8-19 employees, ideally all of a similar job class). If possible, offer incentives and rewards such as movie tickets or lunch, to recruit participants. Develop a list of open-ended questions in advance and allow 60-90 minutes for the discussion.

Informational interviews are an alternative to Wellness Program focus groups. The Wellness Program coordinator of your health improvement Procedures or selected members of the Wellness Committee can conduct one-on-one interviews with employees in a variety of positions to better understand their attitudes, interests and obstacles related to a) health behaviors and b) the workplace policies, environments and practices.

Population data

If data on the employee population are not available, you can use state or national data to estimate the prevalence of risk behaviors among employees.

In addition to looking at the health behaviors of employees, take a good look at your corporation. The following questions can help you identify opportunities for your corporation to support and encourage healthy behaviors among employees.

A strong foundation for employee health improvement

1. To what extent does the senior management in your corporation actively and visibly support the Corporate Health Promotion Program?

__ No support for the Wellness Program
__ Support, but not at senior level
__ Support at senior level, but not visible to employees
__ Strong and visible Wellness Program support
Comments:

2. Is the Wellness Program tied to your corporation’s mission statement?

__ No
__ Yes, the Wellness Program is tied to business plan OR mission statement
__ Yes, the Wellness Program is tied to both business plan and mission statement
Comments:

3. Is there an employee within your corporation whose job responsibilities include Wellness Program coordination?

__ No
__ Yes, but has little time available to dedicate to Wellness Program
__ Yes, and has at least component of the job dedicated to Wellness Program
__ Yes, and has at least one full-time position dedicated to Wellness Program
__ Yes, and has at least component of the job dedicated to wellness AND has a background that includes Wellness Program qualifications
__ Yes, our corporation has at least one full-time position dedicated to health improvement AND the employee’s background includes Wellness Program qualifications
Comments:

4. Does your corporation have an active wellness committee with diverse representation?

__ No (does not have a Wellness Committee, or has a committee that doesn’t meet)
__ Yes, we have a Wellness Committee, but with limited representation
__ Yes, we have a Wellness Committee with widespread representation
__ Yes, we have a Wellness Committee with widespread representation AND committee involvement is a component of each representative’s job responsibilities
Comments:

5. Does your corporation have an annual budget for Wellness Program expenses? (Corporate Health and Wellness Program expenses may be associated with offering a health assessment, paying for behavior change programs/coaching programs, covering incentives and rewards that encourage healthy behaviors, subsidizing healthy food options, communications and activities around specific health topics, fitness centers/walking paths, etc).

__ No
__ Yes, but funds are earmarked for Corporate Health Promotion Programs (e.g. only for Weight Watchers or fitness discounts) and do not meet all existing Wellness Program needs
__ Yes, funds are available to meet current Wellness Program needs
Comments:

6. Does your corporation have a plan for engaging employees in the Corporate Health Promotion Program?

__ No
__ Yes, we have a communications plan for our Wellness Program
__ Yes, we have a communication plan AND we offer meaningful incentives or rewards (such as premium discounts or debit cards) for the Wellness Program to engage in healthy behaviors.
Comments:

A data-based approach to the Wellness Program

7. Does your corporation have clearly stated Wellness Program goals and priorities for employee health improvement?

__ No
__ Yes
__ Yes, data (e.g. HRA, claims, productivity) are the basis for defining Wellness Program goals or priorities
__ Yes, data AND evidence-based best practices are a basis for defining Wellness Program goals or priorities
__ Yes, data and best practices are basis for defining Wellness Program goals or priorities as well as measuring Wellness Program progress (evaluation)
Comments:

8. Has your corporation completed a Health Risk Assessment?

__ No
__ Yes, but more than 2 years ago
__ Yes, within the last two years, and achieved a participation rate of less than 50 percent
__ Yes, within the last two years, and achieved a 50 percent - 79 percent participation rate
__ Yes, within the last two years, and achieved an 80 percent or greater participation rate
Comments:

A workplace environment that supports healthy behaviors

9. Does your corporation’s tobacco reduction strategy reflect best practices?

(Check all that apply)
__ A no-smoking policy that includes both buildings AND grounds
__ 100 percent coverage for the cost of over-the-counter nicotine replacement therapy
__ Worker access to – and strong promotion of — a tailored stop-smoking program
Comments:

10. Does your corporation provide opportunities (time and places) for physical activity during the work day?

__ No
__ Yes, indoor places for physical activity (on-site fitness center) OR outdoor places for physical activity (walking paths)
__ Yes, both indoor AND outdoor places for physical activity
__ Yes, indoor and outdoor opportunities AND employees can use work time for physical activity
Comments:

11. Does your corporation promote healthy eating by offering access to fruits and vegetables?

__ No
__ Yes, fruits and vegetables are available at the workplace (in vending machines, break areas, or cafeterias)
__ Yes, fruits and vegetables are available and discounted at the workplace
Comments:

Benefits that support employee health improvement

12. Does your corporation provide employees with self-care resources?

(Check all that apply)
__ Distribution of self-care books
__ internet-based access to health information
__ Nurse advice line
Comments:

13. Which of the following preventive services are covered at 100 percent by your corporation’s health benefits?

(Check all that apply)
__ Vision screening
__ Hearing
__ Immunizations (per CDC/ACIP recommendations)
__ Radiology
__ Laboratory services
__ STD screening
__ Preventive health examination for adults
__ Cancer screen (includes: colon, cervical, breast, prostate and ovarian cancers)
__ Contraceptive management
Comments:

14. Which of the following are included in your corporation’s pharmacy benefit?

(Check all that apply)
__ Mail order or other 90-day supply option for medications
__ Specialty pharmacy network
__ Incentive-based tiered formulary design
Comments:

15. Do your corporation’s health benefits provide coverage for behavioral health (such as depression, mental illness, counseling, stress management, and chemical dependency)?

__ Yes, at the same level as health benefits
__ Yes, but at a lower level (less coverage) than health benefits
__ No coverage for mental or behavioral health
Comments:

Why it’s important and how to do it

The Wellness Program Vision

A Wellness Program vision statement is a concise statement that summarizes the purpose and goals of your corporation’s commitment to establishing a Corporate Health Promotion Program. Taking the time to clarify and describe your corporation’s Wellness Program vision can provide a focus and a consistent direction for your Procedures for years to come. The vision statement reminds leaders and employees of the link between employee health and the corporation’s ability to achieve its overall mission.

Answer the following questions and you’ll have the components needed to build a simple and effective Wellness Program vision for your corporation’s culture of health:

• What do you want your Wellness Program to accomplish?
• How do you intend to accomplish it?
• How does this Wellness Program mission support or further the corporation’s mission?

A sample Wellness Program vision statement might be . . .

To have employees who perform at their best and who enable XYZ Corporation to be an industry leader in printing quality and customer service (corporation’s mission), XYZ Corporation is committed to offering opportunities for healthy behaviors during the workday (how) in order to encourage employees not to smoke, to be active, and to eat healthfully (what).

The Wellness Program Brand

In the same way that your corporation’s name and brand image provide visibility for your business, your Procedures toward establishing a Wellness Program will benefit from being easily recognizable to employees:

• A consistently used Wellness Program brand on all communications conveys to employees that the commitment to a culture of health is here to stay.
• A Wellness Program brand institutionalizes the culture and makes it more likely to withstand changes in staff and budget.

Do what you can to engage employees in establishing the identity (brand) for your corporation’s Corporate Health Promotion Program. Not only are they more likely to accept the name, it’s also a great way to announce to employees the corporation’s Wellness Program commitment. Here are two possible approaches to involving employees:

Option 1: Have a Wellness Program contest

1. Announce the Wellness Program contest guidelines and deadline.
2. Have the Wellness Committee review the ideas submitted, and select a name.

If, for example, your corporation, Premier Building and Design, is in the commercial construction business, you might receive the following Wellness Program ideas from employees:

• Cornerstone: Feeling well is what it’s all about
• Premier Elements: Building healthier employees
• Custom Build: Building health builds wealth
• Building Health: Designing better employee health

After reviewing the entries, your Wellness Committee determines that it likes the name “Premier Elements” and the subtitle “Building health builds wealth”. Your committee awards the “name the Wellness Program contest” prize to the two employees, those who submitted the pieces of the name that represent the final product.

Premier Elements: Building health builds wealth

3. Choose a Wellness Program logo to go with the name.

The Wellness Program logo is an important piece of the branding

• Review any ideas submitted for Wellness Program logos.
• If you’re fortunate to have a graphic design professional at your corporation, enlist her or his help with developing the Wellness Program logo!
• As an alternative, select a piece of clip-art that fits with the Wellness Program name you’ve selected. For example, the corporation referenced above might look for a symbol that conveys building, health and wealth.

Option 2: Wellness Committee determines the name and brand

1. Have your Wellness Committee brainstorm Wellness Program names.
• To get ideas flowing, ask members to write down all health-related words and words associated with your corporation or industry.
• Try clustering words together as in the construction corporation example above.
2. Once your Wellness Committee has narrowed down the possibilities to about three ideas, have committee members vote to select a name for your culture of health.
3. Choose a Wellness Program logo to go with the winning name.
4. Announce the corporation’s Wellness Program and the corresponding Wellness Program name. Explain that employees on the advisory committee chose the name.

Sample Wellness Program meeting agendas and topics for discussion

Is your corporation’s Wellness Program Wellness Committee new?  Has it existed on paper but been inactive for a while?  In either case, some of the following may be appropriate agenda items for your first Wellness Program meetings.   You may also want to revisit these topics each year.

•    Clarify roles of Wellness Committee members
­    Are members accountable for implementing changes or recommending changes?
­    How long are members’ terms on the Wellness Committee?
­    How will new members be selected?

•    Determine Wellness Committee meeting frequency and processes
­    Establish dates, times, and locations.
­    Determine how agendas will be set.
­    Plan for recording and distributing meeting notes.

•    Plan Wellness Program communication with upper management
­    Does a leader sit on the group or does the coordinator report on progress (and to whom)?
­    How often do leaders want reports on Wellness Program progress?

•    Select a name and brand for your corporation’s Wellness Program

•    Develop a vision statement for your corporation’s Wellness Program

•    Identify existing allies Wellness Program for promoting employee health within your corporation
­    Who do Wellness Committee members know who could be relied on to support workplace changes necessary to create a culture that encourages health?

•    Brainstorm challenges your corporation may face in working to create facilities, policies and Wellness Program practices that promote employee health
­    What do committee members regard as opportunities? How about potential Wellness Program obstacles?

•    History of past Wellness Program efforts
­    If relevant, summarize past Wellness Program efforts. Discuss what your corporation learned from those efforts.
?    What has the corporation tried over the last few years?
?    What has worked well?
?    What hasn’t worked well?
?    How, if at all, was success of previous Wellness Program efforts measured?

A representative Wellness Committee is a cornerstone of a successful Corporate Health Promotion Program, regardless of the size of the corporation.

Membership of your Wellness Committee

Aim for a committee of a manageable size (no more than 15 members, depending on your corporation’s size). Your Wellness Committee should represent all employee groups (e.g., full-time and part-time employees, managers and front-line employees, salary and hourly staff members, union representation, Human Resources, marketing or communications, legal, and occupational health/safety).

Here are some additional considerations:

• Wellness Committee members can be selected by leadership or can be selected from among volunteers.
• Determine in advance how long Wellness Committee members will serve and how new members will be selected. Balance the need for continuity with the need to bring fresh ideas and energy to your corporation’s Corporate Health Promotion Program.
• It’s not important, or even desirable, to have your healthiest employees on the Wellness Committee. Ideal Wellness Committee members are those who best can represent their peers, motivate others and support the implementation of the Corporate Health Promotion Program.
• Consider offering an incentive or recognition to Wellness Committee members. It legitimizes their positions and encourages participation. Some corporations that have started stipends have generated enough employee interest that the selection of Wellness Committee membership becomes a competitive process. The Wellness Committee responsibilities become a formal component of the member’s job accountabilities.

Role of your Wellness Committee

In some corporations the Wellness Committee is accountable for the implementation of the Corporate Health Promotion Program. In other corporations, the Wellness Committee plays an advisory role. In either case, the group members can be asked to:

• Attend regular meetings of the Wellness Committee.
• Help develop a vision and name for the corporation’s Corporate Health Promotion Program.
• Represent their peer group by sharing ideas, needs, concerns and feedback from their work areas and colleagues about proposed Wellness Program Procedures, policies, and programs.
• Offer feedback on the possible obstacles to proposed Wellness Program Procedures and offer suggestions for addressing those obstacles (e.g., how does a proposed policy fit with the schedules of employees?).
• Suggest effective Wellness Program communication Procedures and solutions to challenges. For example, what is the best way to communicate with employees who work the third shift? How will employees react to a proposed message from upper management?
• Be a voice of support for a culture of health, carrying the message from the Wellness Committee to their work areas and colleagues.

Functioning of your Wellness Committee

Meet. Schedule regular Wellness Committee meetings on paid work time. Your Wellness Committee may want to meet very often at first, then slightly less often as your health improvement strategy is more established. If your Wellness Committee is new, it might be useful to ask members to provide information about themselves and their interests.

Communicate. Set up regular and frequent channels of communication with Wellness Committee members so they are up to date and engaged. An email list is often the easiest way to do this. Encourage communication to flow both ways: from Wellness Program coordinator to members and from members to coordinator.

Check-in. At least once a year, determine how effectively the Wellness Committee is functioning. Is the Wellness Committee serving its original purpose? Ask committee members for their feedback. Do they feel like their work is making a difference? Do they feel like their input is valued and taken into account when planning and implementing initiatives? Do they understand their expected Wellness Program roles and responsibilities? Are there members who want to rotate off of the committee? How will new members be selected?

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

How much to budget for the Corporate Health Promotion Program?

There is no one-size-fits-all formula for establishing a 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 Health Promotion Program. Consider the following common expenses in developing an adequate Wellness Program budget:

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

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

Sustaining Wellness Program Funding

A dedicated Wellness Program line item in your corporation’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 Procedures for ensuring continued financial support for the Wellness Program is frequent communication to upper management, including:

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

Additional sources of Wellness Program Funding

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