Afit and healthy staff is beneficial to both
employers and employees. Healthy
workers have lower absenteeism rates, and it’s cheaper to insure a healthy staff. But,
a company can’t just flip a switch and make
its staff healthy. An effective wellness program must be implemented.
The difficulty comes, however, when trying
to select what wellness plan is right for you.
Needs will vary depending on the business,
and no one plan will be right for each and
every person in your organization. But, there
are ways to determine what programs will
best fit your needs, says Nancy Pokorny, vice
president of business development at the
Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE).
Smart Business spoke with Pokorny about
ways to develop effective health and wellness programs in the workplace.
How can companies communicate their wellness programs to their employees?
One of the most effective ways a company
can communicate its wellness programs is by
integrating the information into avenues like
e-mail, voice mail, memos, payroll inserts and
staff meetings. Employers should investigate
and sign up to receive work site wellness
communication materials available through
most health insurance carriers. A variety of
materials, including brochures, pamphlets,
paycheck stuffer templates and posters, are
available so employers can simply and effectively highlight the wellness programming
available to their employees. By keeping a
positive health message in front of employees and educating them on the tools that are
available to them, employers ensure that
employees know where to turn when they’re
ready to make changes in their overall health.
How can health screenings be helpful to a
company’s overall wellness bottom line?
Bringing a health screening to the work-place is not only convenient, but it also gives
employees the information they need to confirm good overall health and/or to make decisions about health that can impact the quality of their lives and their productivity at work.
Many employees don’t know if they are at
risk for hypertension, stroke, cardiac disease,
high cholesterol, osteoporosis, diabetes, etc.
Health screenings can often help target these
risks. Contact your carrier to determine if it
offers these services free of charge and to see
if it recommends a specific organization to
assist with the screening process. All testing
results are provided immediately in a private,
confidential setting with the intention that
the employees will share the information
provided with their primary care physicians.
What are health risk assessments (HRAs),
and how can businesses implement them?
In general, HRAs are online questionnaires
that inquire about employees’ family history,
general health parameters and lifestyle
behaviors. Upon completion of an HRA, a
summary of the employee’s health risks and
lifestyle behaviors will be issued with suggestions on how to reduce the risks for disease.
While HRAs are not substitutes for medical
histories or medical exams, they are
extremely useful in assessing individual and
group health risks. Companies can use HRAs
as starting points for comprehensive strategies to help their employees get healthier.
Why is it important for businesses to provide
smoking cessation programs to employees?
According to the national Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
tobacco costs U.S. companies $3,388 per
year in lost productivity and excess medical
expenditures for every employee who uses
tobacco. Thus, a tobacco-use cessation treatment program is the single most cost-effective health insurance benefit that companies
can provide. Many programs are available
free of charge and provide individualized
guidance from trained, experienced quit specialists — making people five times more
likely to quit for good. The programs usually
consist of telephone counseling sessions,
nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) patches
and a variety of motivational materials.
What specific health management programs
can companies share with employees?
Several health management programs provide education and support to employees
who are pregnant or diagnosed with a chronic disease. These programs specifically target
some of the highest cost drivers in small business health care. Participation is voluntary
and there is no out-of-pocket cost to a company or employees. Programs exist for
expectant parents, those suffering from
depression, those diagnosed with asthma,
COPD, diabetes, heart failure or coronary
artery disease, and those suffering from musculoskeletal and chronic pain.
How can small businesses engage their
employees in wellness initiatives?
Those companies that endorse wellness
from the top down and set up structures of
accountability for participation achieve success. These companies often promote buddy
systems, team competitions and offer incentives to encourage excitement and participation in wellness initiatives.
NANCY POKORNY is the vice president of business development at the Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE), one of Ohio’s largest
small business support organizations. Reach her at [email protected] or (216) 592-2309. Comprised of more than 17,000 members,
COSE strives to help small businesses grow and maintain their independence. COSE has a long history of fighting for the rights of all
small business owners, whether it’s through group purchasing programs for health care powered by Medical Mutual of Ohio, workers’
compensation or energy, advocating for specific changes in legislation or regulation, or providing a forum and resource for small businesses to connect with and learn from each other.