Employer WellnessEmployer wellness programs and employer wellness consulting services

As with any program, the two vital elements for the success of your wellness program are  senior level management support and employee involvement.  Senior management sets the vision and provides the resources from which action plans flow.  

Genuine support from senior personnel also lends credibility to the wellness program.  It is key that  executive management be visible supporters and role models for your Wellness Program.

Staff Members need to be involved on several levels so that they feel ownership of the wellness program.  Staff Members are the program stakeholders!  

All workers should’ve an opportunity to provide input and feedback through needs and interest surveys and program analysis tools.  The information accumulated ought to be used to plan programs that target those needs and interests to ensure participation, buy-in, and support.

There are several methods to identify worker needs and interests such as –

• Conducting Worker Focus Groups

• Discussing Wellness Interests During Department Meetings

• Distributing and Summarizing a Needs and Interest Survey

• Including an Opportunity to Give Suggestions on Each Evaluation Tool  

Any one or combination of several techniques will ensure that the wellness program meets what staff members want.  Click here for a sample Needs and Interest Survey.

Step 3 provides additional information on determining wellness program needs.  But first, establishing a Wellness Committee can help you involve management and staff members, determine need, and plan your wellness program.

Wellness Program Step 1 –  Be certain to set the Foundation –  

Build Support Among All Levels of the Organization

A key to a successful Wellness Program requires management commitment and employee involvement.

Wellness Program Step 2 –  Form a Wellness Committee

An active Wellness Committee ensures employee involvement, provides buy-in, management support, and maintains a crew that is ready to take action to integrate wellness programs.

Wellness Program Step 3 –  Gather Data to Identify Key Needs and Expectations

The next vital component is to base the Wellness Program on the needs and interests of your business and its workers.

Wellness Program Step 4 –  Establish Goals and Objectives

Goals and objectives are the road maps to guide you where your program needs to go.   These are the foundation for planning and reviewing  activities to ensure that your wellness program is going to meet your unique needs.

Wellness Program Step 5 –  Develop a Detailed Action Plan

There is no such thing as over planning!  the best of intentions can get lost, overstepped, or forgotten without adequate planning, and then it’d be all for naught.

Wellness Program Step 6 –  Pick and Implement a Plan

Armed with the needs assessment information, a Wellness Committee, and goals and goals, it’s now time to put your plan into action!

Wellness Program Step 7 –  Monitor and Evaluate Your Wellness Program

Evaluation is a necessary step to keep a program on target, as well as to ensure that the program is reaching its objectives or achieving the desired results.

Summary

These Seven Steps outline considerations for a comprehensive approach to establish an effective wellness program.  Are you able to implement components of wellness activities without following these steps?  

Certainly, but you may not have the sustainability or ability to obtain desired outcomes.  Following the Seven Steps does not have to be complicated or burdensome.  A very simple approach can achieve a successful wellness program!

Thus, to ensure a successful wellness program consider the key components as you plan your program or improve your current program –

• Senior Management Support and Employee Involvement

• Active Wellness Committee

• Program is Based on Worker Needs and Interests

• Objectives and Objectives are Established

• Detailed Action Plan Based on Resources and Budget

• Program Implementation and Internal Marketing

• Investigation of Outcomes and Program

The program design choices depend on the goals and desired outcomes of your program.  When your goal is to help employees change behavior, reduce risk factors, or save health care dollars then your wellness program would be designed to accomplish those outcomes and a budget would be necessary to support that design.  

There are different wellness program design levels depending on desired outcomes and budgets.  Each level has advantages and disadvantages.  The intentions or results are quite different, aren’t interchangeable respecting obtaining the same results, and consequently should not be confused.  

For  instance, scheduling activities like an worker health fair or lunchtime education sessions, or having  pamphlets available don’t ordinarily lead to behavior change, but may increase awareness on a topic.  

If the goal is behavior change then a different design is required, like Lifestyle/Behavior Change Programs and Organizational Support.  The outline below describes the wellness design levels with a brief explanation.

Awareness Programs –   at this level a corporation makes health information available and accessible to staff members.  This type of program can include  pamphlets on a variety of topics, wellness articles in newsletters, bulletin board displays, e-mail health messages, etc.  

Also, most wellness fairs are designed as awareness programs with providers providing information and providing biometric testings to employees.  

Awareness programs are cheap and do not require robust employee or company time commitments.  However, these programs do not generally lead to healthier behavior change.  

Increasing awareness is not normally enough to generate lifestyle changes for most person, unless used to motivate employees to register for a program being offered at the corporation or community on the topic.  

An example of this would be providing information on the harmful effects of use of tobacco and inviting staff members who smoke to register for a use of tobacco cessation class.

Education Programs –   Educational programs often provide more information on a topic and can also provide time for questions and answers, but are similar to awareness programs.  An example is lunch-n-learn sessions on a health related topic.  

These cost the corporation a little more than awareness programs; notwithstanding, they are still low cost and do not require a excellent deal of time for planning or attending a session.  

Again, increasing awareness and providing information may not lead to the desired behavior change unless ongoing support or incentives are also planned.

Lifestyle/Behavior Change Programs –   These programs are designed as 4 to 12 weekly sessions or workshops to provide wellness education, address barriers and provide opportunities to practice the desired skills.  

Behavior change programs as a result require more corporation resources, cost more, and also require more employee commitment, time and effort.  The results are often the desired positive lifestyle change, which if sustained can lead to potential cost savings.  

Examples are smoking cessation classes, weight loss and weight management meetings, or an ongoing fitness program.

Environmental and Organizational Support –   Environmental support is often considered the highest and most vital level to include when designing your wellness program in order to support and maintain healthy behaviors.  

These kinds of design options include policy changes like –

• Creating a tobacco-free workplace

• Designating a walking path,

• Establishing onsite gyms,

• Ensuring healthy vending machine selections,

• Offering healthy food choices in the cafeteria, and/or

• Establishing flex-time policies.  

Other examples include subsidizing healthful vending machines or cafeteria choices; reimbursing fitness center or weight loss and weight control program memberships; or providing insurance incentives for healthful behaviors.

Ideally, the wellness program design would include some of all of these options.  The more extensive and integrated the approach, the more successful the results will be.  For  instance, a company can –

• have smoking cessation information available;
• can schedule a one hour awareness session on the harmful effects of tobacco use and how to quit;
• can begin an on-site tobacco use cessation program,
• supply self quit use of tobacco kits, or
• support workers to attend a community program; and/or
• on an environmental support level can establish a tobacco-free workplace and grounds,
• offer lower insurance premiums for non-smokers, or
• provide pharmacological quit smoke aids for free.

Wellness Program –  Components for Success

There are a few key components or elements that must be considered to ensure the success of your Wellness Program or wellness program.  These include –  

• Executive Management Support and Worker Involvement

• Active Wellness Committee

• Program is Based on Staff Member Needs and Interests

• Objectives and Objectives are Established

• Detailed Action Plan Based on Resources and Budget

• Program Implementation and Internal Advertising and Marketing

• Evaluation of Outcomes and Program

Major benefits of healthy staff members include –

• Lower Health Care Costs

• Decreased Injuries

• Lowered Absenteeism

• Increased Morale and Loyalty

• Higher Productivity

• Lowered Use of Healthcare Benefits

• Lowered Workers’ Compensation / Disability

• Positive Perception in Community

• Reduced Turnover

• Better recruitment for skilled employees

What’s NOT having a Wellness Program costing your company?  

Consider the health risk factors that are increasing chronic conditions for adults –

• 59 percent of adults are overweight or obese

• More than 60 percent of American adults do not exercise regularly

• More than 75% of adults don’t consume the minimum recommendations for fruits and vegetables

• Heart illness is the most common cause of death and the leading cause of death in smokers

• 26% of workers reported they were often or very often burned out or stressed by their work  

Health Care Costs are Increasing –   Health Care costs are at a record high of $1.7 trillion with no signs of holding steady let alone decreasing.  The average cost of annual healthcare spending is over $5,000 per person and with dependents nearly $10,000.  

Recent data shows that health care related expenses now cost North Carolina businesses thousands of dollars per staff member, per year.

Most Diseases can be Avoided –   Although it sounds unbelievable, professionals indicate that avoidable disease makes up 60 percent – 70 percent of the entire burden of disease in the U.S.    

In North Carolina, it’s estimated that more than 53 percent of all deaths are preventable, and that 2/3 of all preventable deaths are due to tobacco use, physical inactivity, and poor nutrition.

Stress Levels are Increasing –   as business resources become less and companies adopt leaner work practices, the effects of absenteeism and productivity lost have a greater impact.  

In a recent national poll, 78% of American Citizens described their jobs as stressful, and the majority felt that stress levels have become worse over the last 10 years.  Moreover, high levels of organizational stress can negatively affect a company by increasing injuries, absenteeism, and health care costs while decreasing productivity.  

Simple solutions like stress management education, flexible work schedules, quality social interaction, and increased participation in company decision-making can improve stress levels in the workplace.

What’s the Upfront Cost and Time Investment for a Wellness Program?

The cost depends on the type of Wellness Program implemented.  There are a few choices to promote staff member health with advantages and disadvantages of each.  The program design depends on the objectives of the wellness program, the company resources, and the community resources available.  

Improving dietary practices, increasing physical activity levels, managing stress or addressing work life balance issues, and reducing/eliminating tobacco use, are primary strategies for preventing many of the most common avoidable chronic diseases.

The possibilities of how your business addresses these issues are endless and can range from increasing staff member awareness, which could include buying a few  pamphlets on a selection of topics, and measuring walking distances around your facility.

Other possibilities include establishing organizational support such as funding a fulltime occupational health expert or building an on-site health club.  

When well planned and based on your goals, any of these programs can help you succeed.  Refer below to Wellness Program Design Choices for additional ideas.

A Wellness Program is an organized program to assist and support employees in establishing healthier lifestyles.  This can include increasing worker awareness on health topics, scheduling behavior change programs, and/or establishing business policies that support health-related objectives.  

Programs and policies that promote increased physical activity, tobacco use avoidance and cessation, and healthful food selections are several examples.  

Dimensions of Wellness

Wellness is more than fitness.  In addition to fitness, the dimensions of optimal health include

• Spiritual Wellness

• Emotional Wellness

• Social Wellness

• Intellectual Wellness

These dimensions are often depicted as a “life wheel” with examples of health components that include –

• fitness,
• nutrition,
• purpose in life,
• financial planning,
• social connections and support systems,
• stress management,
• mind-body health,
• career planning and
• continued learning.  

The key for individual health is keeping the “life wheel” in balance.  A extensive wellness program addresses most, when not all, of these dimensions.

Why Corporate Wellness?

Employees spend a excellent deal of time on the job, and the reality is that our traditional work-week is increasing.  Indeed, the typical American now works about 47 hours per week.  

Plus, technologies like modems, laptops, cellular phones, voice and email have blurred the work-life boundary.  These realities reduce the amount of time that the typical individual is able to devote to wellness pursuits, and yet workers are expected to be at top performance when at work.

A recent research study  by the American Association of Occupational Health Nurses found that corporate wellness or wellness programs are successful in helping staff members make positive health changes due to a few factors like convenience, environmental support, and colleague or social acceptance.  

What’s the Link between Wellness and the Workplace?

Programs and policies that promote healthful behaviors may make a large difference on employee wellness AND have an impact on the corporation’s bottom line.   Studies have shown that for every dollar invested by companys in corporate wellness/wellness programs, there were savings ranging from $1.49 to $4.91 with a median savings of $3.14*.  

In corporation terms, that’s more than a 3 – 1 minimum return on investment – a number that is hard to ignore, and a best practice that should warrant serious consideration from corporations.  

Truly, a corporate wellness literature review posted in Wellness Practitioner Journal found –  

• 19 studies found a 28.3% reduction in sick time

• 16 studies demonstrated a 5.6 – 1 return on investment

• 23 showed a 26.1 percent reduction in health costs

• 4 found a 30 percent reduction in direct medical and workers’ compensation claims

There’s little doubt that a comprehensive wellness program targeted to meet a corporation’s specific needs can save money by decreasing absenteeism, lowering healthcare expenditures, decreasing staff member turnover, and increasing productivity.

• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2003

Ten Steps Toward Strategic Wellness Programs

The Wellness Program management world is evolving rapidly. Each month, there are new research findings that support the premise that Wellness Programs and disease management have a long-term impact on healthcare costs.

A lot of big companies that began Wellness Programs three to five years ago are showing savings in health, disability, and workers compensation costs. Small to mid-size companies are watching all this and wondering where to begin with wellness.

Getting  upper-level management support and budget approval is one of the challenges at the beginning of a Wellness Program. This is the case because Wellness Programs can be expensive, averaging $150-300 per staff member per year in big corporations.

Most of the savings are not realized for a number of years. This long-term investing is hard for corporations on the move.

The key to success for Wellness Programs is to take a strategic approach. Here are ten steps to consider when starting a Wellness Program.

1. Begin with  senior level management. Without  senior level management support, a wellness strategy can fall flat. Begin with the health of your executive team and discover your wellness champions at the top of the organization.

2. Analyze the problem. Look at your healthcare claims and analyze the trends. Which conditions are driving your medical, disability, and workers’ compensation claims and which are modifiable? What’s worked and what hasn’t hence far? What is the long-term impact of doing nothing?

3. Hold an initial wellness meeting. Invite your key stakeholders both inside and outside the corporation. Ask your broker to facilitate the meeting and invite key health providers including health, disability, Staff Member Assistance Program (EAP), fitness, and occupational nursing.

Review claims and utilization data and identify key areas of concern. Look at current offerings and see how they are able to be tailored to the needs of the population.

4. Consider both healthful and unhealthful staff members. Since 85 percent of claims are typically attributed to 15 percent of claimants, it is essential to reach those with the most costly conditions while also reaching individuals  who are at risk for developing avoidable diseases in the future.

Voluntary wellness programs such as lunchtime wellness seminars miss many of the people  who need them most. Consider programs that are population-wide or target intact workgroups. Wellness incentives help but do not motivate everybody.

5. Make sure to set short-term objectives for the wellness programs. Make sure to set some realistic short-term objectives based on your key areas of concern. Are there any plan design changes that could’ve an immediate impact on spending? Are there some programmatic actions that could’ve immediate results?

6. Find out what workers are thinking. Hold some focus groups to determine where people  are with wellness. What’s working? What isn’t? How much interest do people  have in the Wellness Programs? What obstacles and barriers are workers experiencing when they attempt to change behavior?

7. Be sure you’ve a high-impact Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Your first wellness dollars should go into upgrading your Employee Assistance Program (EAP). A highly utilized Employee Assistance Program (EAP) can provide a foundation for all of your future wellness activities.

A good Staff Member Assistance Program (EAP) is a trusted link to the hearts and minds of staff members. at no additional cost, the Staff Member Assistance Program (EAP) can provide needed follow-up coaching and personal attention for staff members who are working on modifiable health behaviors or involved in disease management (DM) programs.

Nutritionists, fitness, pregnancy, and stress management experts are all part of a high-value Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

8. Make certain to set three to five year objectives for health care savings and measure them. Get help from your broker and insurance carrier help you on long-term objectives for your health, disability, and staff members compensation plans.

Establish program metrics that’ll help you to measure ROI. Go beyond participation rates, completion rates and program satisfaction. Measure changes in readiness, changes in behavior, and changes in risk factors. Establish rigorous methods to measure healthcare savings over the long term.

9. Make sure to set goals for organizational health. Consider the more intangible advantages of a wellness program and quantify them whenever possible. Include staff member turnover rates, cost of new hires, staff member morale, benefit satisfaction data, and employer of option issues in establishing goals. Establish ways to measure success in these areas.

10. Add specifics to your short and long-term plan. Include a program strategy, a communication strategy, and an incentive strategy that will fit with your corporate culture. Focus on integration of related components along a health continuum with communications that are focused, simple, and human.

Establish a budget that includes key components such as consumer education, wellness, health risk (assessment|appraisal}s, and regular biometric screens.

Wellness Programs are vital to improving the health of our nations. Most adults spend more of their waking hours at work than anywhere else, making it a excellent venue for promoting healthful habits.

The worksite organizational culture and environment are powerful influences on behavior and this needs to be put to use as a means of helping employees to adopt a healthier lifestyle. Benefits to Wellness Programs include –  

• Weight reduction

• Improved physical fitness

• Increased stamina

• Lower levels of stress

• Increased well-being, self-image and self-esteem

Companys can also benefit from Wellness Programs. According to recent research, employers’ benefits are –

• Enhanced recruitment and retention of healthy staff members

• Reduced health care costs

• Decreased rates of disease and injuries

• Lowered worker absenteeism

• Improved staff member relations and morale

• Increased productivity

A USA  Department of Health and Human Services report revealed that at worksites with exercise programs as components of their Wellness Programs have –

• Reduced healthcare costs by 20 to 55 percent

• Reduced short-term sick time by six to 32 percent

• Increased productivity by two to 52 percent

Thanks to modern medicine, life expectancy for Americans has continually increased. How much we enjoy these additional years, nonetheless, depends greatly on how we’ve lived our lives.

When our quality of life is to remain high so that we can fully enjoy these additional years, we must practice good consuming habits, be active and refrain from using tobacco products.

Who needs Wellness Programs? When you work in an office or a jobsite or are a member of an organization who spends a considerable amount of time at work, you’ll benefit from a well-designed staff member wellness program. Staff Members spend a minimum of about 200 hours a month at work – a considerable amount of time.

Further, stress, distractions and the pressures of the job can take its toll on the staff member, which makes it important that a wellness program is implemented.

Today, all across America, Canada, Europe and Asia, top corporate Wellness Programs are being used to help improve employee conditions at work and reduce the cost of employee health care.

Some of the top Wellness Programs currently in use today include –

Wellness Programs – Health Risk (Assessment|Appraisal}s (HRAs)

Health Risk (Assessment|Appraisal} is a top Wellness Program currently in use globally. Organizations that implement it determine the safety and health concerns of employees by the assessment of appropriateness of the facilities and equipment against the needs of the employees.

It can, for instance, guide the organization into determining how much air quality within an office room affects the users and then help the assessment team to come up with the measures necessary to correct the problem.

An HRA can also evaluate the level of exposure employees have to certain dangerous or dangerous materials and practices.

Wellness Programs – Immunizations.

This isn’t always practiced in every country since there are regions where government sponsored immunization shots are available. Nonetheless, it has also become an important component of the top Wellness Programs in many organizations in North America.

Immunization shots, such as those used to combat flu, for instance, are offered to staff members for free.

Worker Assistance Programs (EAPs)

Staff Member Assistance Programs (EAPs) consist of a broad variety of services. It can range from providing educational resources to staff members regarding health issues to sponsoring health services and medical care. In many businesses, medical and insurance have also become a staple part of their benefits system.

Weight Management Programs

This is another wellness program that organizations use, namely those that offer in-house commissary or cafeteria services. Instead of serving richer, high-calorie fare, cafeterias offer options for a healthier diet, usually in the form of low-calorie foods and sugar substitutes.

Worker Wellness Newsletters – Health Education Programs

One of the top Wellness Programs that organizations can implement is a self-powered tool using a newsletter to promote wellness, coupled with a visible campaign.

The campaign might  be done periodically and focus on a specific topic, like use of tobacco hazards, cancer, stress, carpal tunnel syndrome, safety in the workplace, etc.

The newsletter in itself may be an effective means to deliver information to staff members or members of an organization but it is far from perfect. Some staff members, for example, might not peruse the newsletter in its entirety or even pay attention to it.

If the issues outlined in the newsletter are promoted through an active and highly visible campaign, it’ll be easier to maximize positive results.

Fitness and Exercise Programs

Another top wellness program for organizations is one that involves physical activities. Businesses often sponsor exercise-related events like marathons and company sports programs to encourage workers to remain fit or lose excess weight. In mid- to large-sized organizations, companies may even pay for fitness center memberships or in-house exercise facilities.

Wellness Program Incentives.

Some of the top Wellness Programs implemented by businesses involve incentive rewards. This involves company-sponsored programs that reward workers for achieving specific wellness goals.

Participation in health campaigns and signing up for Wellness Programs are two of the most commonly rewarded schemes. Rewards can range from special recognitions to points (for larger rewards) to specific gifts. In several cases, cash may also be used.

Notwithstanding, incentive systems have had mixed reactions and levels of success. But it continues to be among the top choices among companies who are willing to modify it for fit their unique needs.

Wellness Programs – Group Activities

In many organizations, businesses take benefit of colleague pressure for encourage employees to participate in Wellness Programs. This is currently among the favorite worker Wellness Programs currently in use today and growing in popularity.

Colleague pressure is often leveraged to help promote competitions referring to corporate wellness and to persuade workers to be active in company-sponsored wellness fairs.

Wellness programs at the corporate level are beneficial, right? Wellness statistics clearly show that such wellness programs are not only cost-effective to the organization but can assist the staff member in developing a healthier lifestyle.

With the rising cost of healthcare, wellness programs simply make sense. So where does the problem come in? Let’s examine the topic from both perspectives.

Wellness Programs –  the Good

• A sampling of corporate returns on investment for wellness programs –  Bank of America –  600%; General Motors – 370%; Pepsico –  300%; Citibank –  465%; and the Washoe County School District leading the pack at a whopping 1,560 percent. (Campbell,J., Wellness Improvement Specialists, www.wellnessimprovementprofessionals.com, Albuquerque, New Mexico.)

• Businesses with wellness programs have realized a 28 percent reduction in sick leave, a 26 percent reduction in adjunctive healthcare costs and a 30 percent reduction in disability and staff members compensation costs. (Health Affairs, Volume 21, No.2, March, 2002.)

• the Washoe county School District in Northern Nevada realized a $15.60 return on investment for every dollar spent due to a 20 percent reduction in absenteeism. (Hardy,A. (2005). at the Top of the Class. WELCOA’s Absolute Advantage Magazine, 5(1), 14-20.)

• Wellness programs provide the structure, encouragement, incentives and ongoing support that many person need in order to make lifestyle changes.

• Staff Members also realize returns on their efforts. FiServ, a financial services technology company, gave employees who filled out a health risk (assessment|appraisal} a meaningful discount on their health insurance premium. (Holland, Kelley, the New York Times, July 22, 2007.)

Wellness Programs –  the Bad

The flip side of the argument centers on basic human rights. Do we want/need our employer to tell us to eat our veggies or lose 30 pounds? Some companies are doing just that and at least one lawsuit has resulted because of it.

• Three hundred businesses have requested assistance from a national employment and labor law firm to institute more assertive wellness programs.(Cornwell, Lisa, Associated Press, Albuquerque Journal, September 10,2007.)

• Clarian Health, based in Indianapolis, Will begin decling worker paychecks by $10.00 for every worker who’s a BMI  of greater than 29.9 because not enough employees were utilizing their wellness services.(Cornwell, Lisa, Associated Press, Albuquerque Journal, September 10,2007.)

• Scott Rodrigues filed a suit against his prospective corporation, Scotts Miracle-Gro, because he believed the corporation’s antiuse of tobacco policy violated his civil rights. the corporation has a policy against hiring staff members who smoke and Mr. Rodrigues’drug screen was positive for nicotine.(Holland, Kelley, the New York Times,July 22,2007.)

• Employee advocates are concerned that health discrimination may not be covered under the American Citizens with Disabilities Act.(Cornwell, Lisa, Associated Press, Albuquerque Journal, September 10,2007.)

Penalizing workers by hitting them hardest where it hurts the most,their pocketbook, doesn’t appear to be a favorable approach to molding human behavior.

Such tactics may lead to increased resentments and retaliation, mainly in the form of absenteeism and presenteeism (decreased productivity on the job.) Voluntary, incentive-based programs, such as the one in the Washoe County School District, can and do produce results.

A positive attitude on the part of management along with an opportunity for staff members to have a stake in the decision-making may yield the greatest dividends to both business and staff member.

The motivation and resolve needed to change unhealthy lifestyle habits can best be derived from the basic tenets of encouragement, respect and support.

Getting Began – Secure management support

• Justifications for having a wellness fair

• Health risk (assessment|appraisal}s

• Make sure to help for high-risk population –  smokers, obese workers

• Early detection of diabetes, heart illness risk factors (high cholesterol, high blood pressure)

Wellness Fair Participation – Identify your audience

• Workers only, whole family, retirees?

• Community involvement? Theme?

Wellness Fair Time Line  

• Make certain to set a date and time Allow 4-6 months of planning time

Wellness Fair Planning

• Identify health-related screenings, tests, other activities you’ll offer Identify educational literature and other learning opportunities wellness fair will provide Include any “fun” activities, or food/beverage needs for the fair

Health Fair Location and Logistics

• Consider location big enough to accommodate the largest volume of individuals  at “peak time” periods

• Determine how booths/stations will be set up

Health Fair Providers

• Target relevant health/safety-related community and corporate vendors to provide services, educational materials, incentives and giveaways

Health Fair Advertising

• Determine marketing tools to be used to inform employees/participants (posters, mailings, e-mail)

• Determine any incentives or giveaways that will be included in the fair or used to encourage participation in the fair

Health Fair Scheduling

• Coordinate timing and events with staff and/or volunteers

Health Fair Personnel

• Schedule appropriate experts Physician or similar healthcare personnel to provide patient consultation for review of blood draw lab results

• Nurse(s) to administer immunizations

• Administrative/all-purpose individual to facilitate paper work, finger sticks and to provide general assistance

• Pharmacist or pharmacist assistant when appropriate Dietitian for nutritional counseling suggested personnel designated for health fairs

Footnotes

1 the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation via Reuters Health E-Line.

2 Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, (9/11/03)

3 www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/press/archive/lower_cost.htm

4 “Is Stress Nibbling Away at Your Bottom Line?” By Stephen Alper, Nov. 15, 2002.

5 Wellness in the Workplace, Michael P. O’Donnell, page 415.

6 http – //www.bmpcoe.org/bestpractices/internal/dayto/dayto_6.html