WELLNESSPROPOSALS

Website Links

Description

Wellness Programs are excellent for waistlines and your organization's bottom line In today's hectic world, most of us are spending more time at work, and have increasingly less time to look after our health. For a long time, businesses have understood the benefits associated with keeping workers well - increased productivity from reduced absenteeism and reduced disability claims. For these reasons, coupled with the fact that many businesses realized double-digit health care costs last year, businesses should consider wellness programs as a way to keep workers healthful. But just how important are wellness programs to employees? How often are they willing to participate in wellness programs designed to positively impact their health? Who do staff members trust to provide them with important information about their health? Answers to these questions and more were lately garnered from a research study commissioned by the American Association of Occupational Health Nurses Incorporated (AAOHN). The AAOHN survey questioned 500 workers nationwide about their perceptions of wellness programs. More than three-quarters of all participants indicated wellness programs are a good way to improve their overall health, and nearly 60% consider these offerings an incentive to remain with their current business. Worker retention and turnover impact the bottom line, so building wellness programs into the work site culture is a valuable way to help retain talented staff members and to enhancing personal health and workplace productivity. Employees appear to have their own agenda when it comes to their health. With new pressures resulting from an unstable economy, national security threats and work/balance issues, it's not surprising that 85 percent of survey respondents cited stress management as a priority topic for corporate wellness programs. In addition to stress, other preferred topic areas for wellness programs include health screening programs (84 percent), exercise/physical fitness programs (84 percent), health insurance education (81 percent) and disease management (DM) workshops (80 percent). In addition to lifestyle and personal health issues, those asked expressed concern about work-related health issues, including strains and injuries resulting from lifting or task-oriented muscle repetition, exposure to harmful substances, personal injury, vision changes due to computer work and workplace violence.

Companies nearby