In the complex national debate on how to deal with the rising cost of health care, an area of general agreement has emerged – helping people adopt healthy behaviors is critical to reducing long-term health care expenses, increasing productivity and maintaining a competitive benefits package. That’s why an increasing number of companies are implementing wellness programs.
According to “Wellness in the Workplace,” a new research study from the OptumHealth Culture of Health Institute, 85% of surveyed employers considered wellness “...a vital part of their benefits mix,” These employers view these programs as an opportunity to maximize health and productivity (82%), reduce claims (78%), and improve employee morale (65%).”
But program penetration and the number of options offered hinges on company size. “Our study found that smaller companies have been slower to adopt wellness programs in the workplace,” says Jason Lee, a senior wellness consultant at OptumHealth. “However, a growing number of small firms are recognizing that getting employees to embrace healthier lifestyles can moderate health care costs.”
Lee and Laura Karkula, vice president of wellness product management at OptumHealth, recently conducted a series of interactive webinars in which they presented these key findings and fielded questions from participants.
The Wellness in the Workplace study offers a broad view of today’s health and wellness landscape, with recommendations about the:
- Prevalence of worksite wellness programs
- Use of incentives and communications strategies to encourage employee participation
- Ways to measure a program’s success
- Evolving trends in workplace wellness
Sample findings from the 2009 study include:
- A majority of companies have only recently begun to offer wellness programs, with 64% having offered programs for less than 5 years.
- About 60% of companies surveyed offer wellness coaching to their employees. Of these, at least 70% provide coaching for fitness, nutrition, stress, weight loss and heart health.
- Smaller companies are consistently lagging larger companies in the penetration of every kind of wellness program. The biggest gaps are for disease management (22% vs.56%), wellness coaching (33% vs. 66%) and health biometric screenings (4% vs. 31%). The differences are narrower for flu shots (65% vs.81%), and discount incentive programs (61% vs. 76%).
Continue to review additional findings from the study.
Despite the impressive level of wellness program adoption overall, many organizations have fairly basic program components such as Health Risk Assessments (HRAs). An HRA can help pinpoint top lifestyle health issues an employee should address, as well as show common problems in an overall population. While HRAs can be a useful tool to begin a healthy lifestyle action plan, other wellness offerings in addition to HRAs help employees take the next steps towards improving their health and wellness. Companies that offer wellness programs should evaluate their offerings to see if the right set of interventions is in place to meet the company’s health and wellness objectives.
For example, wellness coaching is one of the most popular programs that both large and small companies make available to their employees. But the penetration of coaching programs to deal with back pain or help workers quit smoking is surprisingly low. The study suggests companies carefully evaluate what impact not having these types of programs available to employees might have on health claims and employee productivity.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to wellness, but one of the most effective ways managers can promote healthier lifestyles among employees is to foster a culture of health and wellness throughout the company. Beyond merely stressing health and wellness as a top company priority, active participation by senior managers adds credibility, showing, for example that it is okay to take time away from work to exercise. Exercise helps reduce stress, improve health, promote balance and increase productivity.
“What is great to see is when a wellness program begins to take on a life of its own within the company among its employees,” Karkula says. “Then, it becomes less of a top-down initiative and more of an organic initiative that influences workplace culture positively.”
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Continue for more information and a detailed recording of the “Wellness in the Workplace: OptumHealth 2009 Research Study” webinar from the Culture of Health Institute. Interested parties can also contact the OptumHealth Culture of Health Institute for more information about current wellness programs, industry trends, study results and other information related to wellness. The Culture of Health Institute focuses on the science of behavior change and the role it plays in establishing a culture of health and wellness for individuals at work and at home so they can live their lives to the fullest. If you want more information or have questions, please e-mail engage@optumhealth.com.
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