Posted by Corporate Wellness | Posted in Corporate Wellness Program | Posted on 14-11-2008
As the field of Corporate Wellness Programs continues to evolve, so will the need to define the dimensions of a broad-based model of Corporate Wellness Programs. A representative model includes the following Corporate Wellness Program components; health education programs, employee health services and benefits, physical fitness and nutrition programs, Corporate Wellness Program policies and procedures, counseling and employee assistance programs, a safe and healthy work environment, and the integration of company and community resources.
A broad-based approach to Corporate Wellness Programs will maximize the impact of all interventions by increasing communication between administrators, workers, and employee families, while encouraging the adoption of a healthy worksite climate and culture. Philosophically, this model supports the ideals of employee wellness and optimal health by encouraging worksites to go beyond programs designed to only reduce medical costs, prevent disease, or maintain health.
A key factor in the utility of this model is the integration and overlap of responsibilities for Corporate Wellness Programs by various departments and individuals inside and outside the company. As the structure of the workplace continues to change, in the future this dynamic model can be used to evaluate and plan for Corporate Wellness Programs that are truly broad-based in nature.
A Comprehensive Model For Corporate Wellness Programs
According to the National Survey of Worksite Health Promotion Activities (1992) 81% of companies in the U.S. with 50 or more workers have some form of Corporate Wellness Programs activity. This result puts us in proximity of the Healthy People 2000 (1990) objective of 85 percent by the year 2000. Why are employers getting into the business of Corporate Wellness Programs? The three most common reasons cited for employer interest in Corporate Wellness Programs are the desire to control spiraling medical costs, to encourage a healthy productive work force, and as a method of boosting the morale of workers and the image of the company (O’Donnell, 1994).
As the motivations for Corporate Wellness Programs differ, so do the extent of a Corporate Wellness Programs efforts. A program may consist of distributing the occasional health pamphlet on the warning signs of cancer to workers, or it may comprise an elaborate and strategically planned Corporate Wellness Program targeted to the specific needs of a company and its workers. Research indicates (O’Donnel & Harris, 1994) that some Corporate Wellness Programs have been more effective than others in improving health status, but what would a truly broad-based model of Corporate Wellness Programs consist of?
Close your eyes and imagine yourself working for the healthiest business possible. What characteristics or Corporate Wellness Program strategies would make that organization so healthy? Examine it from a holistic perspective. What does that business do to enhance the spiritual, emotional, social, physical and intellectual aspects of employee health? How does that business develop effective health policies and relevant programs that impact all workers? Finally, how does that business demonstrate its belief that workers are the business’s most valued asset?
It is unlikely that any one component of a Corporate Wellness Program will be responsible for the positive health outcomes of all workers. Corporate Wellness Program have evolved from the occasional fitness facility for the exclusive use of business executives, or the sporadic employee safety program, to a wide range of health enhancing services and programs. Corporate Wellness Program consultants often speak of the importance of cultural change and the need to institutionalize Corporate Wellness Programs in today’s workplace. This goal can only occur through a broad-based and integrated approach that impacts on workers through numerous channels.