Importance of Prevention at the Worksite

What is the definition of prevention? For many of us involved in corporate wellness and health promotion it means avoiding illness before it starts and becomes a danger to our health. We accomplish "prevention" by offering employees on site health screenings, health risk assessments, wellness coaching, and educational opportunities. Some of these opportunities are subsidized by the company or available for a minimal fee. Either way, kudos to your organization for offering them and trying to prevent disease/illness before it happens. By focusing on prevention rather than treatment you are creating a healthier, more productive workforce and saving the organization thousands of dollars a year in health insurance claims and medical costs.

Why is focusing on prevention important???? Well......A recent article published by Health Affairs indicated that in 2006 the United States spent more than 2 TRILLION dollars on health care. It also reported that of this money, two-thirds went to chronic disease treatments. Just think what we could have done if we would have invested even half of that money into disease prevention instead of treatment how much better off physically and financially our country would be.

I met with a local company last week and they reported that the cost of providing health insurance for their employees has increased 47% in one calendar year!!! This happens to be their biggest expense. They of course now see the value in health and wellness in the workplace and how even small investments in employee wellness can make a big change. Investing in prevention at the workplace doesn't happen overnight but with the right programs and consistency, I know they will see a large return on investment in the very near future.

In my opinion, prevention and corporate wellness is they key to the future of health care in our country. Workplace wellness professionals have a challenging, yet exciting opportunity to keep employees healthy, more productive, and in return keep costs down.

What are your thoughts and opinions? I'd love to hear from you or feel free to contact me!

Continue to Invest In Worksite Health Promotion

With the ever rising cost of providing health insurance for employees, businesses had become more open to investing in the health of their most valuable asset, their employees. However, with the obvious slump in our economy, employers are once again starting to withdrawl their investments into wellness and are just trying to keep lay-offs at bay and their heads above water.

I have been involved with corporate wellness for almost 10 years both as an employee wellness coordinator and as a corporate health consultant. During the last 5 years, I have been focused on helping companies start and sustain their own wellness programs. Today, obviously there is less support financially for wellness programs and I am truely upset that employers are investing less time and effort into worksite health promotion. A time like this, in my opinion, is the most crucial time to continue to support wellness among employees and their families. Stress levels are at all time highs, people are not going to the doctor as they normally would, and are not eating/or being as physically active as they need to for better health.

It is understandable that times are tough but cutting back on the one thing that CAN save you money in the long run is insane! Therefore, I encourage all employers to continue to fight through this economy, invest in employee wellness, and do whatever you can to keep your employees healthy both physically and financially. It will be worth it and you will be rewarded for your efforts when we get out of this slump!

I welcome anyone wanting to comment on this post and look forward to hearing from my viewers!