Wellness Program Data

What is Wellness Program data?

Wellness Program data is information that is collected about your Corporate Health Promotion Program. All Corporate Health Promotion Programs should include data as an integral part of the Wellness Program plan.

Why should you care about Wellness Program data?

Data tells the Wellness story. Data is the tangible proof of a Wellness Program’s impact.

Building data into Corporate Health Promotion Programs

Why bother with Wellness Program Data?

You need Wellness Program data to:
• Evaluate whether or not your Wellness Program is working.
• Answer the ‘so what?’ about the need for a Corporate Health Promotion Program.
• Offer information to Senior Management about the impact of the Corporate Health Promotion Program.
• Write a budget justification so you can secure Wellness Program resources.
• Use Wellness Program resources efficiently and market your Wellness Program more effectively.

Where to begin collecting Wellness Program data:
• MAKE A PLAN to collect the data: decide what, when, and how information will be collected.
• Find out what information is ALREADY BEING COLLECTED.
o For example: use dairy sales information in the dining facility to measure the impact of a milk marketing/dairy month campaign.
• Start collecting JUST A FEW small pieces of information. Be innovative!
o For example: BMI, APFT scores (before & after), tobacco quit rates

IT’S NEVER TO LATE TO START collecting Wellness Program data.

Innovative Wellness Program data strategies
• Use local college/graduate students to help collect, input, and analyze Wellness Program information.
• If your organization has an internship program, get to know the Internship Director. Take advantage of intern resources – including having the Director and/or interns implement the data collection plan for your Corporate Health Promotion Program.
• Use information to let upper management know about the Corporate Health Promotion Programs affect on the workers.

Present this information at their monthly/quarterly meetings.
• Use innovative follow-up strategies to get information. Phone calls can be effective, but also consider email, mailed surveys with return postage provided, and going to the units in person to collect the information.
• Make data collection ‘fun’ for Wellness Program members.
o For example: use a team approach – the team with the ‘best’ overall results gets some sort of award or recognition.
• ALWAYS relate the impact of your Wellness Program to readiness.