Posted by Employer Wellness | Posted in Employer Wellness | Posted on 21-11-2008
As the science behind Employee Health Promotion Programs continues to evolve, so will the need to define the dimensions of a broad-based model of Employee Health Promotion Programs. A representative model includes the following components; health education initiatives, employee health services and benefits, physical fitness and nutrition initiatives, Employer Wellness Program policies and procedures, counseling and employee assistance programs, a safe and healthy work environment, and the integration of company and community resources.
A broad-based approach to Employee Health Promotion Programs will maximize the impact of all interventions by increasing communication between administrators, workers, and employee families, while encouraging the adoption of a healthy worksite climate and culture. Philosophically, this model supports the ideals of employee wellness and optimal health by encouraging worksites to go beyond initiatives designed to only reduce healthcare costs, prevent disease, or maintain health.
A primary factor in the utility of this model is the integration and overlap of responsibilities for Employee Health Promotion Programs by various departments and individuals outside and inside the company. As the structure of the workplace continues to change, in the future this dynamic model can be used to evaluate and plan for Employee Health Promotion Programs that are truly broad-based in nature.
A Comprehensive Model For Employee Health Promotion Programs
According to the National Survey of Worksite Health Promotion Activities (1992) 81% of businesses in the U.S. with 50 or more workers have some form of Employee Health Promotion Programs activity. This result puts us in proximity of the Healthy People 2000 (1990) objective of 85 percent by the year 2000. Why are businesses getting into the employer of Employee Health Promotion Programs? The three most common reasons cited for employer interest in Employee Health Promotion Programs are the desire to control spiraling healthcare costs, to encourage a healthy productive work force, and as a way of boosting the morale of workers and the image of the company (O’Donnell, 1994).
As the motivations behind Employee Health Promotion Programs differ, so do the extent of a Employee Health Promotion Programs efforts. A program may consist of distributing the occasional health pamphlet on the warning signs of cancer to workers, or it may comprise an elaborate and strategically planned Employer Wellness Program targeted to the specific needs of a company and its workers. Research indicates (O’Donnel & Harris, 1994) that some Employee Health Promotion Programs have been more effective than others in improving health status, but what would a truly broad-based model of Employee Health Promotion Programs consist of?
Imagine yourself working for the healthiest employer possible. What characteristics or Employer Wellness Program strategies would make that organization so healthy? Examine it from a holistic perspective. What does that employer do to enhance the physical, social, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual aspects of employee health? How does that employer develop effective health policies and relevant programs that impact all workers? Finally, how does that employer demonstrate its belief that workers are the employer’s most valued asset?
It is unlikely that any one single of a Employer Wellness Program will be accountable for the positive health outcomes of all workers. Employer Wellness Program have evolved from the occasional fitness facility for the exclusive use of employer executives, or the sporadic employee safety program, to a wide range of health enhancing services and initiatives. Employer Wellness Program experts frequently speak of the importance of cultural change and the need to institutionalize Employee Health Promotion Programs in today’s workplace. This goal can only occur through a broad-based and integrated approach that impacts on workers through numerous channels.