Wellness Program
What is a wellness program?
Wellness program information and resources are becoming common, but who do you trust?
Around the country companies everywhere are implementing a wellness program in the hopes of improving employee health. There are several advantages to offering a corporate wellness program.
A wellness program can vary in intricacy, from only offering information to employees on staying healthy to offering a corporation gym and nutritious meal plans.
The bottom line reason to offer a wellness program is simple - healthy employees are happy employees, and they are what make a corporation run.
As a staff member, a wellness program will assist you in your efforts to live a healthy lifestyle. Depending on the wellness program your company has put into place you are able to learn how to reduce stress, keep your sugar levels in control, and even lose weight if desired.
The support colleagues will give each other will help in improving worker health. Social influences are a major part of a healthful lifestyle and can make or break a corporate wellness program. You will be getting encouragement from colleagues in addition to encouraging others around you to promote wellness in the workplace.
There are a few barriers to wellness programming in the workplace. Aligning cultural touch points will aid in the effort to promote corporate wellness. From resource commitment to rewards and recognition it's the job of the corporation to support a healthful lifestyle as much as possible.
Hiring wellness consultants and wellness experts who have a shared wellness vision with the organization's management is another option for promoting a corporate wellness program. They can give wellness coaching and advice on how to live healthful and make healthful decisions.
Workers are a organization's most valuable assets and it is important to develop opportunities for personal health management, with an emphasis on shared responsibility. A healthful workforce is crucial to the growth of the American business and in the long run is fundamental for the progress of the American economy.
Wellness Program ROI
Aldana, S.G. (2001). Financial impact of health promotion programs: A comprehensive review of the literature, American Journal of Health Promotion, 15(5), 296-320.
- Review of 72 wellness program related studies
- For every dollar invested in a wellness program, there was a saving of $4 in health care costs and a savings of $5 in reduced absenteeism costs
Chapman, L., Burt, R., Fry. J., Washburn, J., Haack, T., Rand, J., Plankenhorn, R., & Brachet, S. (in publication). Ten-Year Economic Evaluation of an Incentive-Based Worksite Health Promotion Program, American Journal of Health Promotion.
- 10 year study of employees in health care setting
- Components : HRA, newsletter, self-care book, self-directed change materials, workshops and financial incentives
- For every dollar invested, there was a savings of $6.52 in health costs and sick leave
Fries, J. F. & McShane, D., (1998). Reducing need and demand for medical services in high-risk persons, Western Journal of Medicine, 169(4), 201-207.
- 1 year study of employees and retirees working at Blue Shield of California
- Components: HRA, newsletter, self-care book, self-directed change materials and a nurse line
- For every dollar invested, there was a savings of $6.00 in health costs
Fries, J. F., Bloch, D., Harrington, H., Richardson, N., & Beck, R. (1993). Two-year results of a randomized controlled trial of a health promotion program in a retiree population: The Bank of America study, American Journal of Medicine, 94, 455-462.
- 2 year study of retirees and spouses of Bank of America in California
- Components: HRA, self-directed change materials and serial feedback
- For every dollar invested in the wellness program, there was a savings of $5.96 in health costs
Goetzel, R. Z., Dunn, R. L., Ozminkowski, R.J., Satin, K., Whitehead, D., & Cahill, K. (1998). Differences between descriptive and multivariate estimates of the impact of Chevron Corporation’s health quest program on medical expenditures, Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 40(6), 538-545.
- 3 year study of employees at Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati
- Components: HRA, newsletter, coaching, workshops and a nurse line
- For every dollar invested in the wellness program, there was a savings of $6.75 in health costs
Goetzel, R. Z., Jacobson, B. H., Aldana, S. G., Vardell, K., & Yee, L. (1998). Health care costs of worksite health promotion participants and non-participants, Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 40(4), 341-346.
- 2.5 year study of employees and retirees of Chevron in San Francisco
- Components: HRA, newsletter, coaching and workshops
- For every dollar invested in the wellness program, there was a savings of $6.42 in health costs
Ozminkowski, R.J., Dunn, R., Goetzel, R., Cantor, R., Murnane, J., & Harrison, M. (1999). A return on investment evaluation of the Citibank, N.A. health management program, American Journal of Health Promotion, 14(1), 31-43.
- 3 year study of employees at Citibank, N. A.
- Components: HRA, newsletter, coaching, workshops, nurse line
- For every dollar invested in the wellness program, there was a savings of $4.64 in health costs
Serxner, S. A., Gold, D. B., Grossmeier, J. J., & Anderson, D. R., (2003). The relationship between health promotion program participation and medical costs: A dose response. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 54(11), 1196-1200.
- 5 year study of employees at 14 Daimler Chrysler sites in Michigan and other states
- Components: HRA, self-directed change, workshops and financial incentives
- HRA participants averaged $212 less annually in medical costs Incentives
Chapman, L.S. Proof Positive: An Analysis of the Cost-Effectiveness of Wellness, 2005
- Review of 42 worksite health promotion programs, covering 370,558 participants with an average program length of 3.60 years and 4.7 program components.
- Weighted average results show a 27.8% reduction in Sick Leave, a 28.7% reduction in Health Costs and a 33.5% reduction in Disability and Worker’s Compensation Costs.
- For every dollar invested, there was a savings of $5.50 in cost.
