Employee Wellness Newsletter : Health Screening

The backbone of wellness programming at the workplace is health screening. It is the first primary activity a company ought to do when first starting a wellness program. Health screening is often used in conjunction with the administration of a Health Risk Appraisal (HRA).

The most effective way to screen is to utilize a health professional trained in wellness evaluation techniques and counseling to privately and individually assess participants. This wellness professional takes a brief health history and measures Blood Pressure (BP) and cholesterol. With computerized cholesterol desktop analyzers, results are obtained in about four minutes.

Immediate feedback, consultation, and educational materials are provided. For those identified at-risk, follow-up appointments can be scheduled at this time. The whole process takes about twenty minutes per individual. The screening also provides an immediate opportunity to register participants in various health improvement programs based on their interests and identified health risks.

Health evaluation can be done on an yearly basis and used as a means of monitoring health risks within the workplace.

A health screening program needs to offer multiple opportunities for participation. The service should be provided for all the various shifts of a employer. The screening program should be conducted in highly visible areas so the process can be observed.

Reluctant staff members frequently like to be able to see what the program is about before they participate. When wellness screeners are not busy, they ought to perform outreach going to areas where staff members gather and attempt to recruit staff members.

When well-planned and promoted, health evaluation can attract participation rates of 60% to 100%. These high participation rates have a beneficial impact on management producing support for further programming.