Health Promotion Programs.

Corporate Exercise Plans Improve Staff Member Wellness

Instituting a health promotion program improves the health of personnel, decreases staff member absenteeism and saves the company money, too. Learn more about beginning an staff member health promotion program in the office.

Advantages of Health Promotion Programs

o  A company investment of $100-$150 per worker annually to participate in an worker wellness program can save organizations $300 to $450 for each worker every year, as reported by Ron Goetzel, Director, Cornell Univ. Institute for Health and Productivity Studies.

The savings can take a few years to actualize, says Goetzel, and are seen in decreased health expenditures.

o  The Wellness Councils of America announced a $24 return for every $1 spent on a corporation health promotion program for small companies.

o  As reported by a 2005 survey by the Art of Wellness, companies who instituted staff member health promotion programs realized a 30 percent reduction in medical and absenteeism costs in less than four years.

A successful wellness program starts with company leaders. Corporation owners ought to lead by example, taking part in their organization’s staff fitness initiative and working closely with a wellness coach.

Company leaders should be certain staff are well conscious of their wellness efforts, posting weight loss results or use of tobacco cessation results on business intranet or bulletin boards for everybody to see.

Staff Member Wellness Programs that Really Work

o  Be certain to encourage workforce to kick start their own health promotion programs by visiting their physician. A complete physical ought to include information about blood sugar, cholesterol levels and general health.

o  Target specific health-related concerns in a corporate exercise program. Information about how to fight obesity, smoking, alcoholism and drug abuse must be at the forefront of an staff member health promotion program, along with related conditions.

o  Hire a wellness coach to instruct workforce on how to lead a healthful lifestyle.

o  Reward workforce for participating in company health promotion programs. Let workforce accrue wellness points that they can redeem for prizes.

Make the prizes healthful, too- a free massage, private training session with the organization’s wellness coach or health food gift certificate encourages even healthier lifestyle options.

o  Acknowledge staff member wellness leaders in organization newsletters, in posted bulletins and on the organization intranet.

Corporation Health Promotion Programs Yield Big Results

For organization owners who want to elevate employee participation in a organization health promotion program, consider Johnson and Johnson’s approach.

Faced with only 26 percent of employees participating in their worker wellness program, Johnson and Johnson offered employees a $500 discount on medical insurance costs when they completed a health risk profile.

The number of workforce participating in the Johnson and Johnson employee fitness program jumped after they offered the incentive — to more than 93%.

Ron Goetzel encourages those looking to pitch a staff exercise program to company leaders to use basic facts about the advantages of worker health promotion programs as part of their argument.

Keep it simple, and share results from other company’s employee wellness program success stories.