» The Importance of Including Wellness Programs in your Benefit Plan

As many would agree, the biggest asset a company can have is healthy employees. The million-dollar question is what you, as the employer, can do to create and promote the correct environment to nourish your employees. For starters, implementing the correct wellness program for your employees is key. The questions we see as advisors are;

• My organization does not use the current program we have in place.
• How do I get them more involved?
• How does this affect my employee’s performance?
• Why is this important?

The first step is designing a program that works for YOUR ORGANIZATION. Not every company has the same needs, more specifically not every employee has the same needs. First and foremost, assemble a wellness committee who promotes, plans, communicates, manages, and facilitates the program. The next step is having the committee than asses the culture and employee behaviors, this is key to the success of the program. Your employees want something that is not just user friendly but also coincides their hobbies and interests. A common way to assess these behaviors is through a Health Risk Appraisal (HRA). The first output is an individual report that can help your employees identify modifiable risk factors for chronic disease. The second output is an aggregate report which can be used to stratify employees according to risk so that preventable health issues can be prioritized, and strategies developed.

The question you as employers are probably asking yourself is, why is this important?

For starters it can be a financial gain. On average, employers spend $300 million on employee health care and missed workdays annually. By providing a positive work environment it increases productivity and involvement, which than decreases your overhead cost of health care and missed workdays. Also, through incentive wellness programs and a great culture employees become more engaged which makes them less likely to suffer from mental health disorders, obesity, and other types of health complications.

To recruit and attain the top talent you must understand the needs of the workforce. This generation is focused on health and wellness programs more so than others before because a few of the following: more exposure to junk foods, a more open dialogue regarding the topic, and the overwhelming access and exposure to the internet. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 40% of Americans between 18 and 40 years old experience symptoms of depressive disorder or anxiety disorder. This is severely concerning because the rise seems to continue due to the past few years. Moreover, 53% of employees feel like they are not supported by their employer. Imagine being on the upside of this percentage and having glass door reviews that rave about your culture, benefits, and incentives.

Overall, by creating interactive and affective programs you create healthy people. Healthy people have high energy and are more efficient.

Set up a meeting for further assistance or questions!

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-Eleanor Schroeder

Posted by John Hansbrough in Behavioral Health, Employee Benefits, Human Resources, Mental Health, Wellness