Posted by Company Wellness | Posted in Company Wellness, Wellness Programs | Posted on 18-08-2010
25 percent Jump in Business Interest in Staff Member Wellness
Employee health promotion for their staff, companys are discovering, is good for the health of their corporations as well. Health promotion programs help to cut the costs associated with poor worker health, which include absenteeism, loss of productivity and poor work quality.
A recent Hewitt Associates survey of over 500 U.S. companies indicated a significant paradigm shift in how companies view health benefits for their workforce.
Of those surveyed this year, 88 percent are committed to instituting long-term healthcare assistance programs (over the next 3-5 years) for their personnel, with the goal of increaseing the health and productivity of their workforce. This represents a 25 percent increase in interest in wellness programs over 2007.
A strong offering of health promotion programs to meet the demand has resulted. Health assistance providers have broadened their health promotion programs with tools that address general lifestyle factors, physical, social and psychological health factors.
Programs look to predict chronic illness in their workers and give them the tools and the information to prevent it. Companies also demand a way to measure the effectiveness of their health care spending.
Self-care is our motive, says Vic Lebouthillier, president of progressive wellness provider Exan Wellness.”We really believe giving employees tools to help them manage their own health, and promoting the benefits, while giving people resources to reach out for help is the key to successful lifestyle change.
Businesses are also telling us they need a cost-effective way to deliver wellness programs. The kind of wellness program we have created over years delivers the highest health care return on investment.”
Combining company health promotion promotions, internet based assessments and health trackers, internet based medical information, telephone conferences and self-help groups, and access to a wide variety of health specialists, is behind the success of the Exan health promotion program. “Having internet based statistics about employees’ health also makes it easier to track the bottom line – ROI” says Vic Lebouthillier.
Organizations are moving beyond their traditional role as a provider of healthcare benefits to develop holistic wellness programs that pinpoint the specific health needs of their staff member populations, drive staff member behavior change and eliminate barriers to healthcare, says Jim Winkler, leader of Hewitt’s health management consulting practice.
Notwithstanding, in a separate survey of 30,000 workforce, 74% said that, although they felt their company had an obligation to help them understand how to use their health benefits program, only 12% felt the company had any right to tell them how to be healthful.
Based on these results, employers need to drive home the fact that improved health is better for their employees in addition to the organization. It is a win-win situation.
Corporations and staff members did find common ground when it came to future health care. Both surveys indicate that 95% of staff members understand that their taking care of their health today will impact future health care payments.
A similar percentage also understand the important of early detection and avoidance when it comes to saving on health care costs.
Cost is important for most corporations as well. Over 80% of those surveyed made cost mitigation a priority for 2008, but those cuts didn’t involve shifting responsibility for healthcare onto workers.
While 64% of organizations have shifted costs to their personnel, only 17% plan to do so in the next 3-5 years. Likewise with health reimbursement accounts, 20% now offer these, but only about 5% plan to use them in 2008.
These survey leads todicate corporations are getting more proactive in assisting their workforce to change behaviors and take ownership of their own health futures. This is obviously good for the wellness of workforce, but also for the wellness of the corporations they work for.
Nearly half the companies surveyed were convinced that changing health behaviors was key to increased productivity and lower absentee rates. Over 60% plan to institute health promotion programs that help employees change and/or sustain a healthier lifestyle.
Almost of these organizations will also use data and measurements to ensure their healthcare strategies meet their healthcare objectives?