Wellness Seminars.

Brown bag presentations are a good way to develop awareness about selected health topics. Community health experts will often provide presentations of a half hour or less at no charge.

Use employee interest surveys to follow up on employee interests that are expressed.  The definition of health is broad, so brown bag presentations may also cover a broad variety of topics. Topics may include physical, mental, emotional, women’s health, men’s health, financial health, etc.

Considerations for brown bag presentations -

o  Brown bag sessions are excellent for awareness building. This seed planting process can help staff become more proactive about healthy options.

o  Don’t schedule the wellness program for the full hour – generally 40 minutes or so works best. This will allow folks a chance to come and go, grab a quick bite, ask questions, etc.

o  If the subject matter is sensitive, like domestic violence, substance abuse, etc., it’s possible individuals are going to be reluctant to attend for fear of being associated publicly with the problem. They will, nevertheless, attend if the focus is on assisting family members, coworkers, etc.

o  Ensure that personnel hear valuable information and will leave with tools and resources to carry out the message. Make certain to work with the presenter on information strategies that work for your staff member group.

o  Promotional materials should publicize the health promotion program with a name that indicates the brown bag focus. Include all other pertinent information such as where, who, when, etc.

o  Some topics that cannot be covered in one session could  be offered in a short series. It’ll work best to schedule one session each week in lieu of a few sessions in one week.

For  instance, you may offer a 3-week series on healthful consuming instead of trying to cram all the information into one session.

o  A catchy title can draw individuals  to the event.  An example of this would be calling lunchtime presentations “Noonlighting”

o  When possible, provide a free healthful snack for personnel who attend.

o  To keep the momentum going, try establishing up a routine monthly time and day for lunchtime seminars.

o  When workers work in shift or are in work groups in different geographical areas, devise a plan that offers equal attendance opportunity to all.

Resources -

1. Please see the idea list at the end of this guide which offers a variety of resource topics of interest to staff.

2. Every community has many individuals, professionals, or professionals from voluntary groups (heart, cancer, lung associations), special interest groups (Y’s, Red Cross, Weight Watcher’s, Safety Council, Alcoholics Anonymous), or the local health department as possibilities to present worksite sessions free or at a low cost.

Many of these contacts will also provide inexpensive materials.

3. Topic videos could be used for a brown bag session.