A recent article in the Herald-Citizen, a Tennessee publication, talks about how the Cookeville Regional Medical Center has implemented an employee wellness program that’s working out very well. The director and vice president of human resources at the medical center noted that it’s all about the incentives when it comes to employee wellness programs.

With incentives, employee wellness programs can be fun and rewarding. They motivate employees to want to join in. Some incentives can include paid days off work, discounts on insurance, bonuses, money and more. One incentive may appeal more to one employee wellness program participant, but it seems safe to say every participant has their eye on one of the rewards. Especially with the holiday season, many of the participants of CRMC’s Employee Wellness program found the paid time off, money prizes and bash back off health insurance to be very appealing. Some say that the employee wellness program is an extra push that helps them meet their health goals, and that’s certainly a big reward.

This is a yearly event for CRMC, and they note that some find it comforting to have it happen each year. Some participants go up and down with their goals, while others improve a bit each year. Simply participating in the program provides employees encouragement to be healthier and stick to it.

The article points out how investing in the lives of employees can be a good thing, as they are one of the many assets of an organization. Implementing an employee wellness program can help improve morale and health. It can also lower health insurance costs and improve a company’s bottom line.

If you’re interested in starting up an employee wellness program at your place of business, contact Employee Wellness USA to find out your next steps and get a free wellness proposal.

The Northeast Human Resources Association (NEHRA) is out with a story regarding the 10 Steps to a Healthier Employee Population in 2009. Just in time for the new year, this list gives great tips for getting healthier employees by promoting employee wellness next year.

The article points out the three major benefits of employee wellness. Cost savings is the first benefit, and the NEHRA says employee wellness can simply lead to an improved bottom line, with companies experiencing savings a variety of ways. The next major benefit of an employee wellness program is fewer missed days of work. With obesity able to cause or worsen things like cancer, heart disease, mental illness and stroke, the NEHRA says it’s costing workplaces in lost productivity — to the tune of $1.1 trillion. A lot of this cost, says the NEHRA, can be avoided. Lastly, the story notes that the third major benefit of employee wellness is happier employees. A happy, healthy worker is less likely to seek out a new job, plus they feel better about work.

Those employers who are interested in implementing employee wellness programs and seeing healthier employees in 2009 are encouraged to take action to make it happen. The NEHRA has a few tips for doing this, like providing a monthly newspaper or recipe, starting a walking group and bringing fitness to them. They also advise creating a monthly theme, where guest speakers and seminars could happen that would relate to that theme.

2009 will be here before you know it, so waste no time if you’re thinking about implementing an employee wellness program at your business. Employee wellness programs not only improve a business’ bottom line, but they can improve employee morale, boost productivity and help corporations save money. At the same time, there are benefits to the employees. It’s really a win-win situation for everybody.

To get a free wellness proposal for your company and find out more, don’t hesitate to contact Employee Wellness USA. An investment in employee wellness is one that can truly pay off.

An employee wellness investment is good even during a financial crisis, says a recent article from MarketWatch.com. Since the financial crisis has companies looking for ways to cut costs and increase productivity, an employee wellness investment just makes sense.

Companies are realizing the benefits that come along with an employee wellness investment as they take note of how employee health care costs are a risk to the growth and profitability of a business. The article points out how investing in employee wellness may be a moderate up-front expense, but it is no doubt an investment with a demostrable ROI.

Employee wellness and corporate wellness programs deliver results. Great for both employees and employers, employee wellness programs can offer lower employee absenteeism and lead to fewer injuries and provide better productivity. It can also result in fewer worker’s compensation claims and disability claims. What’s more is that employee wellness programs can increase morale and improve employee retention. Workers will appreciate getting employee wellness as a part of their overall compensation package.

Though the financial crisis has many companies evaluating their budgets, they could overlook a simple way to cut costs: an employee wellness investment. With so many advantages for employees and employers, it’s really a win-win situation for everybody.

Start Investing in Employee Wellness

Start investing in employee wellness today by calling one of our healthcare management representatives. From there, you can get started with an evaluation of your company along with a free wellness proposal to help you in your approval efforts. An employee wellness investment is one that can really pay off.

Wellness Programs Provide Long-Term Results

Wellness programs, according to an article in Crain’s Detroit Business, come in two choices:  workplace wellness programs or health insurance products that aim at lower costs if healthy habits are followed.  Both options are a good choice, but only one will really provide long-term health benefits for your employees and lower costs over the years.

Wellness Programs Offer Assistance

Insurance-based products offer employees the opportunity, according to the article by Jay Green, to save money on their premiums if they follow certain steps, including performing an online health assessment, visiting their physician, and agree to adopt a healthy lifestyle.  These plans usually involve one coach call to the employee during the first 90 days.  We wonder if these brief wellness encounters will actually change a person’s lifestyle.

It is the overall change in a person’s lifestyle, as well as disease prevention that will lead to lower health costs in the future.

Onsite workplace wellness programs, like the ones that EmployeeWellnessUSA works with you to establish in your place of business, offers convenient health risk assessments and screening tests for things like diabetes, cholesterol and blood pressure.  As the article states, these have initial start-up costs, but the savings accrue over time and employees are more likely to stay active in an onsite employee wellness program.

Wellness Programs Get Results

Finally, the article states that companies with an effective employee wellness program can expect to see “500 percent lower absenteeism, 400 percent fewer disability claims, and 350 percent lower health care costs.”  These are numbers that are very hard to argue with.

If you are ready to start seeing those numbers in your company, contact one of our wellness experts today.  They are there to answer all of your questions, as well as provide you with a free wellness proposal.

Wellness’ Return on Investment

Wellness Programs … do they offer a strong return on investment? This is a question that we are sure goes through ever corporations mind. HR Magazine addresses the wellness return on investment topic in their June 2008 issue.

Wellness Programs: The Bottom Line

According to the article, titled “Finding Wellness’ Return on Investment,” determining the return on investment of a wellness program is not an easy thing to do for companies because it involves a lot of different variables and time.

However, the corporations that have taken the time to determine the ROI of their wellness programs have found that it is quite significant. Not to mention, the wellness program’s effect on the improvement of employee health and the slowing of the rate of their employee health care costs.

Wellness’ alliance for ROI

Wellness is such an important part of today’s corporate culture, that several large corporations have come together to form the Alliance for Wellness ROI, Inc. According to the HR Magazine article, The Alliance for Wellness ROI was specifically created to address the lack of consistency in proving the value of wellness programs.

The alliance, formed by BMW of North America, Henry Ford Health System, Kraft Foods Global, MasterCard Worldwide and Schlumberger Limited, strongly believes in showing the value of wellness programs and want to develop a standard for how wellness programs are measured.

Wellness Program Components

According the alliance, the following components should make up an corporate-offered employee wellness program:

• Disease Management programs
• Employee assistance programs
• Fitness programs
• Health risk assessments
• On-site medical programs
• Personal wellness profiles
• Screenings and preventative care
• Smoking-cessation programs
• Telephonic wellness services
• Weight management programs
• Wellness education and communication
• Work/Life balance programs.

EmployeeWellnessUSA can assist you in creating an Employee Wellness Program that includes all the above components, as well as others that fit the needs of your employees. Please contact one of our wellness professionals to receive a free wellness proposal.

Workplace Obesity: The Facts

Workplace obesity has become one of the fastest growing health care problems in America. It is well known that America is considered one of the, if not “the”, heaviest countries in the world. This is largely in part due to fast food, un-healthy snacks and a very sedentary lifestyle. However, what many people are not aware of is that the rate of obesity in our country has doubled in the last 30 years and this weighs heavily on a company’s bottom line.

According to a new report from The Conference Board, Weights and Measures: What Employers Should Know about Obesity, obese employees cost private employers an estimated $45 billion annually. Here are some of the report’s findings:

• Obesity is associated with a 36% increase in spending on healthcare, more than smoking or problem drinking.
• 34% of adult Americans fit the definition of “obese”
• Obesity related health problems are costing American companies billions of dollars annually in medical expenditures and work loss.

Workplace Obesity: How Employers Can Help

With the increase in obesity and employer costs associated with it, it is more and more imperative to establish a way to assist employees with their healthy living choices. Wellness Programs can help employers help their employees. By providing assistance with health screening, health risk assessments and by conducting employee wellness surveys; wellness programs allow the employer non-invasive ways to communicate their concerns about their employee’s health.

EmployeeWellness.com suggests establishing a Walking Wellness program to assist your employees in meeting their weight-loss goals. Walking Wellness is a program designed to get your employees away from their desk and get them outside for a little exercise. Keep it fun by having contests, setting up weight-loss teams and having organized healthy picnics.

If you have any questions about how to get your employees moving, and therefore saving them and your company money, please feel free to contact one of our wellness experts.

The Wellness Councils of America Have an Employee Wellness Test for Your Community

Employee wellness program administrators, get ready. The Wellness Councils of America have thrown down the gauntlet.

No, they’re not inviting you to some bare-knuckle confrontation in the parking garage. That would be counter to the principles of the twenty-one-year-old Omaha, NE, non-profit, which is dedicated to encouraging healthier lifestyles, focusing primarily on better employee wellness through the workplace. WELCOA, as it’s more succinctly known, is an organization of like-minded individuals, corporations and Wellness Councils in the United States that defends the health of the American worker.

The corporate wellness challenge? To see if your organization can help catalyze and catapult your community to prestigious “Well City” status.

Are You Fit for “Well City”?

According to WELCOA, Well Cities are those cities that take health management seriously at every level, from the individual citizens to the small non-profits to the largest employers.

In Well Cities, a significant portion of the community has taken a committed approach to employee wellness. Employers are drawing lines in the sand, agreeing to help employees eat healthy, get exercise and de-stress.

Employee Wellness Is a Win-Win Proposition for Employees and Employers

As you may already know from reading the articles in our employee wellness library, a focus on health risk management and proactive employee wellness planning has tangible benefits for both employees and employers. Employee wellness statistics show that better health means better productivity and job satisfaction. Some employees actually consider corporate wellness programs to be compensation – as valuable as a high salary.

But it doesn’t stop there. The numbers also show that employee wellness ROI can be in the range of $2.30 to $10.10 per dollar spent on corporate wellness programs, benefits and initiatives. These savings come in the form of lower absenteeism, less sick time and lower health insurance premiums.

Current Well Cities

The list of WELCOA Well Cities is diverse and exclusive:

• Bangor, ME
• Kanawha Valley, WV
• Kearney, NE
• Gainesville, FL
• Hobart, IN
• Lincoln, NE
• Chattanooga, TN
• Omaha, NE
• Jacksonville, FL

Employee Wellness Mavericks – Get Well City Soon!

We at EmployeeWellnessUSA believe that service-minded employee wellness coordinators should think long and hard about the ancillary benefits of shooting for Well City status in your community. Not only is it a good opportunity to meet like minded organizations and city officials in your area, but it has the potential to galvanize your workforce. Applying for Well City status suddenly makes their health and wellness a matter of civic pride.
For more on employee wellness and Well City, see the WELCOA Well City website. Or simply contact our employee wellness specialists about your corporate fitness plans.

Employee Wellness Study Shows Billions Lost Due to Illness

Employee wellness was shown to be a huge economic boon for companies in a recently-released joint report by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Economic Forum (WEF). Nearly three billion productive employees in labor markets worldwide add up to a lot of money. The employee wellness study estimates that China will lose $558 billion, India $237 billion, and Russia $303 billion in national income from 2005 to 2015 due to only three chronic diseases: heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.

Lack of Employee Wellness A “Huge Expense”

The U.S. Center for Disease Control also reports that chronic disease accounts for approximately 75 percent of yearly employee health care costs in the U.S., which constitutes a huge expense for companies. And the Public Health Foundation of India estimates that its country will lose 18 million potentially productive years of life by 2030, a statistic no nation can afford, let alone a developing one.

Employee Wellness Programs the Answer

A sustainable solution to these challenges cannot be solved by medical benefits alone. Workplace commitments to employee wellness are also crucial. Companies are advised to implement on-site health screenings for their employees, as well as look into a comprehensive health management program. These and other precautions are good secret weapons against the economic pitfall of unhealthy employees.

Maintaining employee wellness during cold and flu season can be a challenge for any company. The average adult can get up to four colds in one year, and hundreds of thousands are hospitalized every year for flu complications. From December to March, there are more employees out of the office due to illness, and others who barely made it to the office and can hardly think over their constant coughing and sneezing.

Prevention is the Key to Employee Wellness

Prevention is the key to maintaining good health in the workplace and increasing overall employee wellness. Fighting infection after the cold and flu epidemics hit is a losing battle and can best be combated with early action, such as implementing a corporate wellness program in the office for good health year-round.

Keeping the Office Germ-free During Cold and Flu Season

The typical office is the perfect breeding grounds for influenza or the cold virus. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases says that there are higher chances for the spread of infection during winter because people spend more time indoors. In an office, this risk is increased by cubicles, bringing many people into a close space. On-site health screenings conducted regularly as part of an overall health management program will increase the chances of employee wellness year round, and especially during cold and flu season.

Education Can Increase Employee Wellness During Cold and Flu Season

Educating employees about various ways to stay healthy during cold and flu season may help prevent the spread of any sickness to the entire office. Hand washing is a crucial component in maximizing employee wellness, as bacteria collects on keyboards, mouses, around the water cooler and next to the community coffee pot. As employees shake hands, infection may be passed, multiplying the chance of getting a cold or coming down with the flu. Hand washing and anti-bacterial cleaners for surfaces can help reduce the spread of sickness.

Employee wellness is possible during cold and flu season. With Employee Wellness USA, your office can reach one step closer to immunity from sickness during cold and flu season.

As we move into 2008, we would like to wish everyone a happy, healthy new year. Be sure to take good care of yourself and your employees this year. Look into starting a corporate wellness program, and think about providing wellness testing to your employees. Show them how much you care about their health. If your workforce is happy and healthy in 2008, your company is likely to be as well.