The Importance Of Employee Wellness Programs

Today, I welcome Heidi Smith with her guest post on Employee Wellness. Heidi is a certified integrative nutrition health coach, certified corporate wellness specialist, certified meeting professional and author.

Employee Wellness --Why Should Employers And Employees Care?

By: Heidi Smith

What does employee wellness mean?

At its core, employee wellness is a philosophy based on the notion that by investing in a health and wellness program, employers can create a healthier workforce through:

Behavior modification
Use of better preventive care
Better healthcare choices
And healthier lifestyle choices

The next question is, “Why should you care?” Well, by having an employee health and wellness program at your workplace it can help you to:

Reduce your risk of developing a chronic disease
Lower your medical costs
Improve your productivity
Have a happier and healthier environment at work

After all, most Americans spend about 8.9 hours per day at work so wouldn’t it be nice if your work environment was supportive of healthier lifestyle choices?

Today, employers are focusing more on employee wellness programs because of the increasing cost of healthcare, the increase in chronic conditions that are preventable and the rise in healthcare consumerism.

Cost drivers to employers are the cost of employee medical costs and the cost of medical insurance. Did you know that health insurance premiums have increased nearly 200% since 1999? That increase is staggering and can be devastating to some organizations.

Employee wellness programs can help employers to control direct and indirect costs of employee healthcare by reducing the risk of employees developing preventable diseases and chronic conditions. They will help employees to engage in healthier lifestyles and use recommended preventive care which will keep them healthier and more engaged at work. Wellness programs will also help to identify any risk of potential chronic conditions earlier so there is more opportunity to “nip it in the bud” before it turns into something that will cost the employer time, money and lost productivity.

The statistics about employee health are powerful:

13% of employees are at risk for developing diabetes
40% of cancer is preventable
66% of American employees are overweight
80% of heart disease and stroke are preventable

More than 75% of all healthcare costs to employers are due to preventable chronic illnesses. What is a preventable chronic illness? It is a non-communicable illness that is prolonged in duration that does not resolve spontaneously and is rarely cured completely. Tobacco use/smoking is the SINGLE MOST PREVENTABLE CAUSE OF DEATH in the USA.

$5.6 billion dollars are spent on heart disease related illnesses in this country every year and at least least 10% of that cost would be eliminated if adults started walking regularly.
70% of the 50 million adults in the US have not controlled their blood pressure.
30% of deaths from colorectal cancer could be prevented with regular screenings.
Women between 40-50 years’ old who get a mammogram every 1-2 years can reduce their risk of death from breast cancer by 15%.
An even bigger killer than smoking is a sedentary lifestyle! More than 5.3 million people die each year from not moving enough.

The numbers are even higher for women in the workplace than for their male counterparts these days. There are seven major causes of death for women now which include hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Alzheimer’s disease and lung cancer. A large part of these conditions are preventable, again, by controlling lifestyle behaviors and obesity.

For all employees, poor health, unhealthy behaviors, obesity and stressors can lead to reduced productivity and/or individuals leaving the workplace. It is often compounded for women as they are also, most often, caregivers at home as well so the stressors and unhealthy behaviors can be even more exaggerated with that added role.

What can employees to do stay healthy at work?

· Move more! Take the stairs, park as far away from the entrance as you can. Do some squats while you are on the phone. Stretch between meetings. Incorporate some easy yoga moves into your day to stretch your muscles or go for a walk during lunch.

· Standing desks! If your employer will allow this in your setting, get one. The opportunity to get blood flow to your legs during the day is great. Stand on your tippy toes and stretch those calf muscles. Good circulation will help to prevent blood clots or diseases like DVT (deep vein thrombosis).

Eat health foods! If your employer does not have healthy options in vending machines or the cafeteria, bring your own food to work. Eating a clean diet will make sure you are putting good fuel into your system and will help you to have lasting energy throughout the day.

· Ask about your wellness program. If you are not already involved in a wellness program through your employer, ask if there is opportunity o create one. Even small businesses can put policies and plans into place that will help their employees to be healthier and happier.

For more information on healthy eating, better lifestyle choices or employee wellness programs, feel free to contact Heidi at the Integrative Wellness Studio at 832-777-6669 or heidismith@integrativewellnessstudio.net.

Heidi Smith is a certified integrative nutrition health coach, certified corporate wellness specialist, certified meeting professional and author. You can find her book Milk. Toast. Available now on Amazon.com and at www.integrativewellnessstudio.net.

Comments

How To Be A More Human Leader

“To be most effective in today’s environment, leaders must be human leaders. Human leaders must be able to lead not only with their heads but also with their hearts and souls,” says veteran executive coach Hortense le Gentil , author of the book, The Unlocked Leader: Dare to Free Your Own Voice, Lead with Empathy, and Shine Your Light in the World . She adds, “In addition to being respected, seen, and valued, employees also seek leaders who feel human, not distant and perfect beings with whom they can’t connect.” Additionally, leaders need to put the collective interest before their own and work hard to make other people’s good ideas happen. “And although the book focuses on leadership at work, each of us is a complete individual, not a sum of separate, isolated parts. As such, the process presented in the book applies to all areas of your life,” shares the author. She further explains that becoming a human leader is a journey, not a desti...

29 People Who Taught Us Life Lessons In Courage, Integrity And Leadership

The 29 profiles you will read in Robert L. Dilenschneider’s new book, Character , are about people who are exceptional exemplars of character. They’re inspirational because they used their abilities at their highest levels to work for causes they believed in. Because of character, they influenced the world for good. The dictionary defines “character” as the mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual, the distinctive nature of something, the quality of being individual in an interesting or unusual way, strength and originality in a person’s nature, and a person’s good reputation. “But beyond these definitions, we know that character is manifested in leadership, innovation, resilience, change, courage, loyalty, breaking barriers, and more,” explains Robert (Bob), “Character drives the best traits in our society, such as honesty, integrity, leadership, and transparency, and it drives others to exhibit those qualities.” Profiled in the book ar...

Full Engagement By Brian Tracy

Best-selling author Brian Tracy's book, Full Engagement , provides practical advice for how to inspire your employees to perform at their absolute best. He explains that above nearly every measure, employees' most powerful single motivator is the "desire to be happy." So, Tracy teaches you how to make your employees happy by: Organizing their work from the first step in the hiring process through the final step in their departure from your company so they are happy with you, their work, their coworkers, as well as in their interactions with your customers, suppliers and vendors. Full Engagement includes these chapters and topics: The Psychology of Motivation Ignite the Flame of Personal Performance Make People Feel Important Drive Out Fear Create That Winning Feeling Select The Right People Internal Versus External Motivation At a minimum, Tracy suggests that managers do the following when managing their employees : Smile Ask questions Listen ...

Chick-fil-A Serves Up 11 Leaders On May 6

On May 6 , the quick-service chicken restaurant chain, Chick-fil-A will serve up more than chicken. Because, that's the day when the chain's President and COO Dan Cathy brings together 10 influential leaders during a one-day leadership " Leadercast " available at hundreds of locations around the U.S. and overseas. "We desire to influence leaders at every level within an organziation. Whether you are leading a team of 2,000 or just yourself, the Chick-fil-A Leadercast is designed to help you use your voice to create positive change," explains the organization. I am a big fan of Chick-fil-A because of its customer service. It is also known as a company that has built its success on core values and its focus on developing leaders . I also like that employees respond with "my pleasure" instead of "no problem" when customers say "thank you." Chick-fil-A says leaders can express themselves with five voices (described below i...

The Top 20 Leadership Books: What To Give First To A New Manager

Eighteen months ago, I posted the question “ What’s The First Leadership Book You Would Give To a New Manager ?” within the discussion forum for the LinkedIn group Linked 2 Leadership . That question generated 603 comments and 690 recommendations. Some people suggested more than one book. Some during the course of the 18 months made the same book recommendations a couple times. And, the group discussion continues to be one of the most active still today. In early November 2011, group member Len White graciously culled through the comments using his company’s Symphony Content Analysis Software that assists with the organization, analysis, and reporting of themes contained in text data. And here are the results : · 412 different/unique books were recommended · The Top 20 recommended books, collectively, received 250 of the total recommendations · Two authors – S...

How to Be a Leader – 9 Principles from Dale Carnegie

Today, I welcome thought-leader Nathan Magnuson as guest blogger... Nathan writes : This is it, your first day in a formal leadership role. You’ve worked hard as an individual contributor at one or possibly several organizations. Now management has finally seen fit to promote you into a position as one of their own: a supervisor. You don’t care if your new team is only one person or ten, you’re just excited that now – finally – you will be in charge! Unfortunately the euphoria is short-lived. Almost immediately, you are not only overwhelmed with the responsibilities of a team, but you quickly find that your team members are not as experienced or adroit as you. Some aren’t even as committed. You find yourself having to repeat yourself, send their work back for corrections, and staying late to fill the gap. If something doesn’t change soon, you might just run yourself into the ground. How did something that looked so easy ...

Leading Business Transformation That Lasts

David Shaner's compelling, The Seven Arts of Change , shows business leaders that transforming a business only happens when each employee equates organizational change with the process of deep personal growth. "The bottom line is that, despite how technological and automated organizations have become, at their core they remain a collection of human energies that are merely being applied in an organized environment," explains Shaner. "Resurrecting and guiding that human core of your organization is the secret to leading and sustaining change," he adds. Shaner pulls from his vast professional and personal experiences, including having been a member of the Olympic Valley USA Ski Team and a former Harvard University teacher, to lay out a seven-part "spiritual guide" for change: The Art of Preparation (Assessment) The Art of Compassion (Participation) The Art of Responsibility (Accountability) The Art of Relaxation (Clarity, Focus, Visibility)...

Be A Visible Leader

If you are a manager in a small business or not so large department, it's probably easy for you to be visible to your employees and co-workers. If you manage a large business, department or organization , you'll want to make a conscious effort to be visible. Don't spend your days behind closed doors or constantly in meetings. Walk around. Make conversation with your team members. It's important that you maintain visibility with your employees. That also means associating with employees at all levels. Don't limit your time for only your direct reports. The benefits for your employees are that they get to know you better and feel that you are more in tune with what's going on. The benefits to you are that you'll build a stronger rapport with your team, and you'll undoubtedly hear about good things and bad things through casual conversation that you would have missed if you had been less visible.

Five Essential Principles For Being The Leader You Want To Be

“By focusing in specific ways on five key leadership elements— Purpose, Process, People, Presence, and Peace —you can increase your time, capacity, energy, and ultimately your leadership impact,” explains Amy Jen Su , author of the book (released today, October 22), The Leader You Want To Be: Five Essential Principles for Bringing Out Your Best Self—Every Day . Su shares both Western management thinking and Eastern philosophy to provide a holistic yet hands-on approach to becoming a more effective leader with less stress and more equanimity. She draws on rich and instructive stories of clients, leaders, artists, and athletes. And, she focuses on three foundational tenets: s elf-care, self-awareness, and personal agency . Most important, Su explores in depth, chapter-by-chapter the Five Ps : Purpose – Staying grounded in your passions and contributions, doing your highest and best work that has meaning and is making a difference. Process – Relying on daily practices and ...

Create The Future And The Innovation Handbook

March 10 brings the new book, Create The Future: Tactics For Disruptive Thinking, by J eremy Gutsche , CEO of Trend Hunter. Flip the book over, and you have Gutsche’s updated and expanded, bestselling, Exploiting Chaos , book now called, The Innovation Handbook , featuring memorable real-world case studies and plenty of thought-provoking questions to inspire next steps for innovation. It's the ideal guide to turn your big idea into a reality. Gutsche shares that, Create The Future , "is a book about Disruptive Thinking, so it makes sense that it shouldn't follow conventional norms. That led me to create a double-sided book, where the first part is all about resetting your expectations and learning how to make change happen. Once you are primed for change, you can flip it over to read, The Innovation Handbook , and began the journey to finding your big idea. He adds, "however, another way to think about this is that I don't think you can truly ...

Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

Search This Blog