Wellness
7
...in the workplace
by Angela Nunez, based on an interview with Joan Melanson of the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program
-creased with greater participation. Members who participated two or more times per week generated $2,141 less per member in total health care costs than those participating less frequently. A Humana study on SilverSneakers® participants found that savings produced by the study groups averaged more than twice the cost of the program. Participants were also 40%+ more likely to stay with Humana than the control group, showing that workplace wellness programs do indeed improve retention.
Comprehensive scientific reviews identified 378 studies showing that employee wellness programs improve health knowledge, behaviors, and underlying health conditions. People with healthier lifestyles live an average of six to nine years longer, postpone disability by nine years, and shorten the years of disability at the end of life. Prevention programs have been shown to reduce 15 key health risk factors, primarily blood pressure, blood sugar and stress. Managing stress is one of the most important steps we can take in maintaining good health, so the fact that prevention programs help us do so is a strong indicator that they should continue being implemented.
It is also worth noting that in a Principal Financial Group Two-Year Wellness Program Study, more than a third of participants receiving one-on-one health coaching decreased their likelihood to develop diabetes, heart attack or stroke. Implementing quality wellness programs is one of the best ways to help employees maintain their health now and into their older years. Adopting a healthy lifestyle extends one’s life expectancy and reduces the period of disability at the end of one’s life.
Two studies by Dr. James F. Fries measured health habits and resulting disability and mortality in low health risk and high health risk participants. Life expectancy in low health risk participants was extended 3.5 years and disability was delayed 10 years. These improvements in one’s quality of life are well worth the investment and effort.
There is little doubt that wellness programs have numerous benefits. An unhealthy lifestyle is the primary factor in the six leading causes of death in the U.S., which
are heart disease, cancer, stroke, respiratory diseases, accidents, and diabetes. And with about 133 million Ame-
Joan Melanson is Director of Program Promotion, for FLTCIP, the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program
-ricans (nearly 1 in 2 adults) living with at least one chronic condition the costs to society are enormous. These lifestyle-related and preventable chronic conditions account for more than 75% of all health care spending, which has led to health care costs and wellness initiatives being front and center on the national agenda as critical public policy issues.
A successful wellness program typically includes:
1. An annual health risk assessment (biometric screening).
2. A personalized action plan to address participants’ strengths and risks.
3. Personalized health coaching (fitness, diet, stress, smoking cessation).
4. Self-help fitness and nutrition programs.
5. A nurse line and on-site wellness center.
6. Easy access to health and wellness resources and information, including health insurance and long-term care insurance.
7. The inclusion of spouses and families.
Program engagement is vital to its success, and engagement is driven by robust incentives, a strong and consistent communication strategy, management endorsement and participation, and creating a culture of wellness. If your organization can successfully do these things, the program is likely to be a huge success.
We cannot continue to be a burden on the younger generations and must take steps to care for ourselves, plan for the future, and maintain our health from an early age so that we live longer, healthier lives instead of longer, sicker ones.
TMGovU offers an online certificate program in Workplace Health & Wellness. To enrol, visit: www.tmgovu.org