Health And Wellness In The WorkplaceHealth And Wellness In The Workplace

How can our company increase participation in the corporate wellness program?

Having a corporate wellness program in place can boost morale, improve fitness and health and increase productivity in the workplace. Now that you have taken the steps necessary to begin a corporate wellness program, how do you get your employees interested and willing to participate?

By implementing healthy consuming habits, exercise and offering incentives, your staff members will not only sign up for the wellness program, but they’ll stick with it.

Does your corporation have an onsite fitness club that staff members have access to? If not, offering free or discounted fitness club memberships to a local fitness club can be an effective method for getting staff members to exercise. Whether the fitness club is on or off-site however, permitting staff members to use the facility during work hours, like on their lunch break, will increase the likelihood that they will exercise.

Rewarding employees’ achievements is another way to keep them aroused and living a healthful lifestyle. Establishing corporation objectives such as collectively walking a certain number of miles, supports team building. Offering incentives such as gift cards, certificates of achievement, and even a day off work may be effective ways to keep participation levels up.

Since there will likely be less sick days being used due to illness, your company could  be able to afford to offer a day off pass as an incentive. These incentives do not have to be expensive, just valuable to the employee.

Providing a healthful lunch once a week for workers participating in the corporate health plan, is a excellent way to promote healthful consuming. Offering an incentive of healthful, delicious, free food is one way to reward workers for their efforts while supporting their new healthful lifestyle.

Having a corporate wellness program in place will provide long term benefits to both the corporation and the staff members. This is one corporate plan that is certainly worth your time and money!

Why should our corporation host a corporate health fair?

Do you work in your corporation’s HR department? Are you looking for events to plan for your company this year? When so, it’d be a great idea to look into hosting a corporate wellness fair. Corporate wellness fairs are valuable to both the business and the staff member because they promote overall health, awareness and prevention.

What kind of vendors are at a health fair?

There are many providers to pick from when bringing a corporate health fair to your corporation. the most popular providers include dentists, massage therapists, chiropractors, nutritionists and the American Red Cross. These few popular providers are a part of a long list available to attend health fairs.

How do we select which vendors to include in the wellness fair?

While most vendors are excellent for all workers, there are some vendors available for companies with a specific demographic. for example, if your company has a lot of pregnant women or women of child bearing age, it may be a good idea to have a vendor namely talking about prenatal care.

If there are a lot of smokers at your corporation, you could want to have the American Lung Association present. Attempt to pick providers that meet your employees’ needs. Remember that hosting a corporate health fair is meant to be beneficial to them.

When should we hold a health fair?

Anytime is a excellent time to host a wellness fair. Nonetheless, you could want to consider not scheduling around holidays or busy seasons so that you can maximize participation. Another excellent choice is having the corporate wellness fair on a weekend and making it family friendly. Corporate wellness fairs help keep everybody healthy, therefore increasing work productivity.

Not only does hosting a corporate wellness fair promote health, it also builds camaraderie between peers, improving team building and communication in the office. It is a win-win for both the employer and the employee!

Wellness programs have been proven to lower absenteeism, worker turnover rates, and health care costs. It’s a key piece of a corporation’s success. the results of these programs lead to higher productivity, which in the end leads to a more profitable corporation.

In order for these programs to run properly and produce results they must have a clear operating plan with an attainable and measurable goal. the programs must also encourage all staff members to lead a healthful lifestyle while at work and at home.

Wellness programs have been introduced to companies all over the country in an effort to make workers healthier and in turn happier. Companies which implement these programs do so to varying degrees. Some simply offer literature about how to live a healthy lifestyle and reduce stress while at work.

Some companies offer medical screenings and health risk (assessment|appraisal}s for free during the year to help workers understand what’s going on with their health and what they can do to improve it.

At the top of the list, there are the corporations which offer free, onsite gyms and aerobics programs to be used at lunch breaks or after work. No matter what’s offered it would be a waste not to take advantage of these wellness programs.

It requires cautious planning and thought to start wellness programs. Once a program is put into place it is very important to reassess and analyze it several times for reach the primary goal –  healthier workers.

All the programs that are put in place ought to be evaluated after a determined time frame to help the business understand what needs to be changed or kept in place to maintain corporate wellness.

Everybody knows today that working in corporate America can be a stressful situation. It seems that staff members are expected to work longer hours and spend more time away from home. Long commutes and big amounts of work are taking its toll on American office employees. Something must be done; business wellness is a good way to start to help all those stressed out employees.

Starting business wellness programs can help develop a healthful culture. There must be an incentive program set up to drive interest to wanting to be more health conscious. Making good decisions that affect health now and in the future must be rewarded as individual’s goals are met.

There are a number of wellness ideas that a business wellness program can help plan for. Some ideas include giving out maps of walking or jogging trails located near the workplace. It’s a good idea to post a steps gathered map on the workplace wall where all staff members can log their steps or miles.

Make sure to help encourage joggers, walkers, and those who enjoy other forms of exercise to form exercise groups to meet before work, during lunch, or after work.

In a company environment, relationship development is also an area where aligning cultural touch points are necessary. Make sure to work culture affects health practices.

Staff Members will either form personal relationships in a bad way, like tobacco use in the break room, or they’ll form relationships doing something more physical like going for a round of golf for relaxation and developing friendships with fellow staff members. Be certain to work ought to be done to develop healthy venues to develop specialist friendships and relationships.

There are so many good benefits for a corporation selecting  to make corporation wellness a priority. Staff Members who participate in wellness programs are more likely to be the best workers.

Coworker relationships in the workplace are important to creating a healthy lifestyle culture that lasts. as an added bonus, overall job satisfaction is better if workers are feeling well and healthy while doing their work.

Corporate wellness is one of the most vital investments that a corporation can make. Corporations that implement wellness programs are not only investing in the physical wellness, safety, and mental health of their workers, but are also taking preventive measures by creating a healthier environment.

By implementing a wellness program, companies are able to improve the overall productivity and are able to save money on health expenses. Often, companies are concerned about the actual wellness ROI (return on investment) but the reality is that by encouraging healthier lifestyles, companies are creating healthier staff members who’ll work more diligently and miss fewer days of work due to disease.

It is imperative that corporations not only provide corporate wellness solutions for their workers, but that they also maintain ongoing knowledge about safety and wellness techniques. Businesss need to keep up to date on health statistics and stay aware of ways to encourage specific wellness issues like smoking cessation or weight loss.

It is often helpful for a company to consult with doctors who participate in medical Continuing Medical Education so that they’re up to date with how they can assist their staff members in maintaining wellness.

Also, when a corporation maintains an on-site gym, it’s necessary that the corporation employs person who have received the proper training and certification, which makes up the gym management, in order to assist workers with exercising safely.

Although companies may establish a comprehensive wellness program with many choices, an incentive wellness program is often necessary in order to encourage workers to actually participate in the programs.

Whether one is creating a corporate wellness Chicago or a corporate wellness small-town Nebraska program, the issue that companies often have in common, is the lack of motivation of employees to actually participate. Providing incentives for employees, like a free lunch or gift cards, could  be simple enough rewards to encourage employees to participate in corporate wellness.

Do you know the fastest-growing reason for employee assistance program (EAP) use since 2003?  

It isn’t for substance abuse or depression. Actually, it’s financial in nature. Over the last five years, there’s been a stated 69% jump in employee EAP use related to personal financial concerns.

The trend isn’t all that surprising in this era of salary freezes, high deductibles and cost-sharing of benefits premiums.

Statistics show that, for the first time since the Great Depression, the typical American has negative savings – in other words, debt exceeds income – in a typical month.

A lot of employees are racking up high credit card debt, make the problem worse.

Troubling trends

Here are some ominous numbers from a recent staff member survey –

• 27 percent of respondents said they were “one major setback away from financial disaster”

• 22 percent say they were “worse off than last year, with less take-home income and more debt”

• 40% say their company is “insensitive to their employees’ financial needs,” and

• only 6% said they felt comfortable with their current financial situation and ability to manage their debts.

The majority of personal-finance related employee assistance program (EAP) use arises from concerns over debt management, household refinancing and/or failed investments.

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Allowing staff members to bring camera phones to work can carry hidden legal risks.  

But should you tackle this issue aggressively or trust your workers to do the right thing?  Every employer wants to develop an environment where workers feel trusted by management. But there’s also the need to stay protected legally, and it isn’t always easy to balance the two.

The cell phone issue is particularly delicate since most staff members carry them nowadays, and improper use at work is a non-issue for the vast majority. But there are always a few bad apples in every bunch.

Growing number of complaints

There has been an explosion of lawsuits – and complaints to management – about employees taking inappropriate photos at work with their cell phone cameras.

Most cases revolve around embarassing or expliclit photos of peers (sometimes but not always posted on the Internet or e-mailed to others in the office). Notwithstanding, a handful of lawsuits have arisen from workers taking photos of confidential documents or other internal information.

As most benefits and HR veterans would tell you, the most valuable benefit an organization can offer its workers is a workplace where they feel trusted and valued. In contrast, it only takes one “joke” gone too far to stir up a hornet’s nest of trouble. and no firm is immune from this risk.

Three options

One step every corporation ought to take is circulating a memo or having a face-to-face meeting with staff members about the need to restrict camera phone use at work, says labor lawyer William Hannum.

This is the time to answer questions and make clear that the policy is a matter of a legal concern, not a case of Big Brother watching over employees’ shoulders. for added legal protection, you might want to create a formal camera phone policy to be written staff member handbooks.

Some employers have gone so far as to take the step of banning camera phone (or personal cell phone) use at work and prohibiting individuals  from posting personal photos or videos from corporation computers.

Notwithstanding, these policies are difficult to enforce and run the risk of alienating the majority of employees who use the devices responsibly.

As an alternative, a few firms that have not banned camera phones have had employees sign a policy that gives managers permission to review photos or videos on the phone if there’s a complaint. If you go down either of these routes, remember –

• the policy should be enforced consistently

• your policy must detail specific steps for filing and reviewing  a complaint, and

• the policy should obviously specify the disciplinary steps for violations.

The enforcement aspect is specifically tricky. In cases where the phones are business property, companys obviously have the right to control non-work use – which includes requiring workers to turn over the contents stored on the phone in cases of suspected abuse. Employees have no legal expectation of privacy in such cases.  

Nonetheless, there’s a slippery slope when the phone is an employee’s property. as a rule of thumb, businesss ordinarily have the right to inspect the contents as they pertain to alleged inappropriate behavior within the workplace.

Where it gets tricky is dealing with behavior that takes places on the employee’s private time, but overlaps with the workplace (e.g., workers go out socializing at a bar after work, and potentially embarassing camera phone photos get spread around the workplace). Legal professionals caution companys to tread very carefully in these cases.

Where does your organization stand?

Does your organization have – or is considering a policy on employee camera phones? Do you think such policies are workable or even appropriate?

In my conversations with attendees at the SHRM conference in Chicago, HR and benefits managers appear to be divided on the issue.

In a value-based plan, the idea is to reward staff members for seeking treatments that promote wellness.

The more clinically viable the treatment, the less an staff member pays out of pocket for it.

Example –  Women over 40 and younger employees with a family history of breast cancer pay less for a each year mammogram than employees for whom the test isn’t as necessary.

Value-based plans often work better than high-deductible plans when used in combination with standard wellness program features like health risk (assessment|appraisal}s.

Five target areas

As reported by the May 2008 issue of Simply Well, there are four quality-of-care criteria that have emerged as key benchmarks of the quality of care –  health care management, preventive screenings and treatments, member service and access to care.

Areas of care that are of particular concern –

• Employees’ dependents receiving appropriate and timely childhood/adolescent immunizations

• Breast cancer screenings for female health plan enrollees, ages 52 to 64

• Diabetic employees receiving hemoglobin A1C and LDL-C testing

• Members receiving proper referrals and treatment for mental health issues (e.g., main care physician refers a patient to a professional to ensure proper prescription and management of an anti-depressant medication)

• Pregnant workers receivig time and appropriate prenatal and postpartum care, and prevention of antibiotic treatment in adults with acute bronchitis.

The quality of care for a lot of of the aforementioned issues can suffer when workers foot too much of the bill out of their own pockets.

The hope for value-based plans is that workers get some cost relief and obtain treatments that will reduce costs in the long run.

As scary as they seem at first glance, complying with HIPAA’s privacy rules may be relatively painless.

Contrary to common belief, the rules – with several key exceptions – apply only to a fraction of the medical information Benefits handles.

As long as the company remains legally “hands off” of employee’s private medical information, you can dodge most of the HIPAA bullet.

For health insurance portability and accountability act (HIPAA) privacy purposes, your firm is considered “hands off” even when you obtain de-identified personal information, aggregate claims data and routine enrollment info.

Bottom line –  If your organization’s health plans are fully insured and the claims administered through a TPA, the insurance company – not your firm – bears the brunt of the health insurance portability and accountability act (HIPAA) privacy compliance responsibility.

One major exception –  medical cafeteria plans. In most cases, you’ve two compliance choices –

• Process reimbursement requests first through your TPA, with the TPA making sure the claim qualifies beneath the terms of the cafeteria plan before your firm reimburses it, or

• Create a written cafeteria plan privacy policy, issue a notice to staff members, appoint a privacy officer and amend your plan documents.

Rarely affects FMLA

Many individuals  - including healthcare providers – misunderstand how HIPAA affects medical certifications for FMLA leave. the key –  HIPAA only applies to personal information that filters through your health plan, not certifications obtained from a doctor.

Under FMLA, you’re allowed to obtain the minimum information you need to approve and administer leave. In like fashion, health insurance portability and accountability act (HIPAA) doesn’t apply to most workers’ comp, return-to-work notices or disability claims.

Even so, it compensates to be cautious how you ask for and use the information. Other state and federal privacy laws often protect the same types of info individuals  assume falls under health insurance portability and accountability act (HIPAA).

Following procedures

The HIPAA privacy rules are heavy on paperwork and procedure.

But if your firm follows  the info-gathering process spelled out in your medical plan documents, the HIPAA privacy rules ought to present few major obstacles.

A lot of firms are still missing an opportunity to trim some health plan expenses.

Generic versions of high-cholesterol drug Zocor have been on market for two years now, but a fair share of corporation pharmacy plans have yet to make the switch.

When your PBM gives generic Zocor favored status on the formulary, now’s a good time to remind employees –

• most individuals  on cholesterol-control meds will get the same therapeutic value from generic Zocor as from the label brand and the more potent – and still patented – Lipitor

•  they are able to save $10 to $50 (or more, depending on your drug plan design) on their co-pay by switching, but

•  they ought to ask their doctor first. People  with cholesterol levels over 200 and/or family histories of  ultra-high cholesterol might  be better off staying on Lipitor.

Reason –  It takes four times the amount of a Zocor-type medication  to equal one dose of Lipitor.