Health Wellness ProgramHealth and Wellness Programs and Wellness Program Consulting

Ideally, you will develop an overriding plan for a Company Health Promotion Program before beginning to plan specific wellness programs. For example, you are able to begin by getting the following elements in place:

• reinforcement from upper management
• a Workplace Health Promotion Program Committee or group
• information about the wellness needs and interests of workers
• a budget
• program objectives
• an evaluation plan

Even if you have few monetary and/or human resources, you have the potential to still take a “micro” approach. By way of example, you could focus on only one specific problem. Creativity, enthusiasm and planning have the potential to help you overcome limitations.

This article will provide you with some ideas for establishing Company Health Promotion Programs. Even the smallest steps are able to have an impact.

Whether you choose to start with a single program or cultivate something larger, planning is essential. First consider the big picture and then look after the details.

Ask yourself these questions:

• Determine an action. What health-related program will fit the bill and best suit the staff members and employer?
• Promote. How can you most effectively spread the word to staff members? What opportunities exist for promotion? Consider everything, because staff members have access to and pay attention to different types of messages. In a typical workplace, staff members receive information from e-mail, newsletters, bulletins, brochures, meeting announcements and fellow staff members.
• Deliver. Who is the best person or group to put the program into action? Ask other companies about approaches they have used. Solidify your budget before making a decision.
• Evaluate. What ought to you evaluate to determine success? Do you need hard data and/or testimonials from individual participants?

We recommend the following when planning your plan:

• creating and communicating clear objectives
• targeting your audience
• deciding on the type of program or campaign

The Elements of a Corporate Wellness Program

Plans to promote wellness in the workplace do not need to be restricted to one area. You might think workplace wellness only involves promoting positive personal health, e.g., Blood Pressure clinics, pamphlets on heart disease, “lunch and learn” courses on eating habits and short-term physical activity programs.

These activities are important, but workplace wellness ought to also be part of business’s business strategy and go beyond traditional programming.

Taking a broader approach, the National Quality Institute recently detailed 3 key components of a healthy workplace:

• physical environment
• social environment and personal resources
• health practices

Specific Program Ideas

Physical Environment

Look after workers’ health and safety and establish regulations to support their health and safety. Consider providing the following:

• Safe bike storage and shower and/or change facilities for cyclists and other commuters.
• Fridges for employees to keep snacks and meals fresh and/or healthy snacks in vending machines and cafeterias.
• Ergonomic assessments.
• Subsidies to help employees join local recreation centres.
• Classrooms/conference rooms available for booking activities such as yoga, pilates, tai chi, meditation and aerobics.
• Safe and pleasant stairways that invite staff members to use them.
• Assessing the potential for violence at work with plans to deal with such risks.
• Good lighting and sound and air quality.

Social Environment

Human relationships and communication, as well as ways of doing business, have the potential to affect an employee’s mental and physical health. Organizations should consider the following:

• respectful workplace policies that provide safe worksites
• policies on flex time
• policies on working from home
• employee satisfaction surveys
• leadership coaching
• resiliency training
• Employee Assistance Program(EAP)s

To cultivate a beneficial social culture or climate, consider employees’ needs, which include:

• being respected
• a sense of belonging, purpose and mission
• freedom of expression
• protection from harassment and discrimination

What you’ve “always done” may not address current employee needs. Making sure that people enjoy being at work is not an easy task, but making the right changes is able to have a huge influence.

Health Practices

Offer programs and set policies that help employees remain healthy or improve their health while at work. Consider offering the following:

• “Lunch and learn sessions” on healthy habits such as sleeping better, eating on the run, healthy snacks, using a pedometer, pole walking, work-life balance, time management, stress management, resiliency, parenting and reading diet labels.
• Tobacco cessation clinics or subsidies to help workers quit.
• Health risk appraisals, including fitness assessments.
• Programs to address the issues raised in the health risk appraisals.
• Healthier snacks served at meetings and conferences.

Personal Workplace Health Promotion Program Tips

If there is no wellness program at your worksite, do not let that stop you from keeping healthy. Perhaps your example will spark a movement toward a healthier workplace.

Here are a few ideas to think about:

• Be active at work. There are many ways to bring exercise into your workday. Walk to work, even if it’s just one way. Have walking meetings. Bike to work. Use the stairs. Walk to a workmate’s office rather than sending an e-mail.
• Eat well at work. Pack a healthy meal. Have a bottle of water at your desk or workstation. Eat breakfast and eat regularly during the day. Take turns bringing a basket of fruit for co-workers’ snacks. Order healthy snacks for gatherings.
• Maintain work-life balance. Work efficiently so you have the potential to leave on time. Conduct short, effective meetings. Leave your work at work and be sure not to take it home. Minimize social chit-chat. Set up your office to enhance your work. Avoid clutter. Create and prioritize to be sure that the most significant things get done first.

There is no limit to the number or variety of Workplace Wellness Programs. A key to success is planning well and ensuring that you can evaluate the outcome so that you can sustain momentum.

Speak with other wellness practitioners to find out what works well for them. Listen to your co-workers to determine their needs and interests. And do not forget to promote, promote, promote.