WHP Porject

Checklist For A Successful Program

Possible Solutions for Your Workplace

Check the items that apply to your workplace. If fewer than 10 items are checked yes, more work is needed.

Yes

No

1. Top management supports the program.

2. The company has a designated budget for health promotion.

3. The program is free or inexpensive to employees.

4. Qualified personnel operate the program.

5. The program staff seeks regular input from both management and employees.

6. Opportunities to participate in the program are convenient for all employees.

7. Health screenings and staff surveys are conducted regularly to assess employees’ needs and interest

8. Attractive and informative program materials are available for employees to use at work and at home.

9. When possible, health promotion activities are open to dependents and retirees.

10. The company’s mission statement cites a healthy workforce among its top priorities.

11. The program provides both general and customized health promotion activities for employees at all work locations.

12. The company gets involved in local health promotion programs to show its commitment to improving the community’s health status.

Questions to Address

Considerations

Your Workplace

Product

1. What is our product, program or service?

2. Is it tangible, visible and measurable?

3. What is the employee’s or client’s need for the product, program or service:

· To look better?

· To feel better?

· To be more productive?

· To lower health risk?

· To socialize with others?

Define the product, program or service in precise, easy to understand terms.

Price

1. Should participants be charged?

2. Can employee/company reasonably afford the product, program or service?

3. Does the product, program or service produce a greater benefit than costs?

Cost may be an extremely important factor in small businesses and other organizations with tight budgets. Determine the probable cost savings of the product, program or service with cost-effectiveness analysis or benefit-cost analysis (Chapter 8).

Placement

1. Who will receive the product, program or service:

· All employees?

· Employees with specific risk factors?

· Only high-risk employees?

· Only men or only women?

2. Which employees are likely to benefit from the product, program or service?

Consider breaking the workforce into segments based on specific attributes:

· Age

· Family size

· Education level

· Work shift

· Past participation status

Promotion

1. What types of incentives can be used to make the product, program or service appealing?

2. What is the best time to promote the product, program or service?

3. Where should promotional efforts be directed?

4. What promotional techniques should be used?

1. A demonstrated benefit must be shown to employees: freebies, discounts, personal coaching / training.

2. Periods of layoffs, sluggish business or talks of mergers are not good times.

3. On-site: workstations, cafeterias, break areas, health clinics, or safety meetings. Off-site: mailings to employee homes.

4. Emails, company website, newsletter, bulletin boards, on-site television channels, health-plan benefit week.

Stage

Coaching Strategies

1. Precontemplation

-Assess personal health status of client

-Assess priorities related to personal health with client

-Assess client’s level of readiness to act

-Inform client that taking action is important, personally beneficial and achievable

2. Contemplation

-Ask open-ended questions to assess client’s intentions and readiness to act

-Avoid giving action-oriented instructions, such as adopting a particular diet plan

-Help client understand the advantages of acting outweigh disadvantages of not living a high-quality life

-Use reflective listening to build client’s self-esteem (e.g. It seems as if you understand the connection between a lack of regular exercise and lacking energy)

-Help client identify positive role models

-Ask clients to set realistic goals

3. Preparation

-Ask clients to set realistic goals, if they haven’t already done so

-Help clients identify an incentive that would motivate them to take action

-Ask clients to identify potential barriers to action and ways to overcome them

-Encourage clients to act on their goals in progressive steps

4. Action

-Reinforce clients good actions

-Encourage clients to tract personal progress and tell others

-Ask clients to identify potential barriers to action and ways to overcome them

-Encourage clients to act on their goals in progressive steps

-As clients progress, encourage them to move beyond initial goal

5. Maintenance

-Reinforce clients good actions

-Encourage clients to review personal progress and revise goals, if necessary

-Encourage clients to track personal progress and tell others

-Ask clients to identify potential barriers to action and ways to keep them from causing a relapse

-Provide clients with handouts, articles, testimonials, and personal screening and progress results to reinforce the benefits of maintaining

-In subsequent coaching sessions, encourage clients to personally set a new goal or add some variety to their personal health plan

Types

Tangible

· Merchandise

· Discounts on health-plan premiums

· Wellness days off

· Lottery for free trip

· Health club membership

· Lifestyle/health coaching

Intangible

· Recognition

· Sense of belonging

· Competition

· Participating on company time

· Self-accomplishment

Best time

To administer

Incentives are offered before participation, rewards are offered when certain goal are achieved.

Note: Tangible incentives should be aggressively offered early on to boost enough participation to produce intrinsic (internal) rewards. Tangible incentives may be necessary at certain intervals to maintain participation.

Promotion Techniques

Several weeks prior to a program:

E-mail

Printed mailing to employees’ residences

Worksite posters

Table tents cards

Newsletters

Suggested Financial Investment

HRA participation rates increases about 10% for every $50 increase

For each $100 increase, program participation is likely to increase 5% -0 10%

Incentives ranging from $350 - $550 typically generate program participation levels of 60% to 80%

Note: Choose a financial value that can be sustained for a long period of time

Evaluation method

Aggregate HRA data

Participants’ self-report

Corporate medical costs

Medical claims

Biometric screening results

Legal considerations (HIPPA)

Avoid incentivizing test results

Financial incentives can’t exceed 20% (30% in 2014) of the annual cost of an employee’s health plan.

Offer reasonable alternatives as incentive criteria based on health status or activity (example: if rewarding nonusers of tobacco, a reasonable alternative for tobacco users must be established, such as participating in a smoking cessation program).

Legal considerations

(GINA)

If using an HRA, exclude any questions relevant to family history, personal medical history or genetics

Types

Tangible

Intangible

Best time

To administer

Promotion Techniques

Several weeks prior to a program:

Suggested Financial Investment

Evaluation method

Legal considerations (HIPPA)

Issue specific to your workplace:

Legal considerations

(GINA)

Issues specific to your workplace:

Procedures

Process in place

Need to implement process

Have clear and concise policies posted and explained to all participants

Use only certified exercise instructors and staff

Require participants in high-risk activities to wear appropriate clothing and use appropriate equipment at all times

All equipment and facilities should feature clear, easy-to-see instructions with precautionary warnings

Explain possibly injuries associated with aerobics, racquetball, weightlifting and other activities to all participants before they begin

Require employees to sign an informed consent form before participating

Use only nationally recognized screening test and procedures

Develop and follow a reliable system of injury reporting

Have a clearly established system and support personnel in place to handle any injuries or emergencies

Develop a hierarchy of supervision to ensure accountability for all phases of the program and facility operations

Designate specific duties and chain of command

Others

Type of Worker

Characteristics

Challenges

Die-hard Workers

Strong interest and regular participation in health programs

Easy to reach

Utilize their enthusiasm for promoting program

Do not take this group for granted, keep their interest and needs in mind when planning programs

The Dependers

Express interest in their health, but often need tangible incentives and regular encourage from family members, coworkers and staff members to regularly participate in health enhancement activities

Harder to reach

Reminders and follow-up is essential to keep them engaged

Keep family involved as much as possible

The Conditionals

Might participate if the conditions are personally appealing

Offer free programs on company time

Encourage buddy system

Make participating as easy as possible

The Resisters

Little interest in personal health

Delay lifestyle change until major crisis

Interest surveys can help staff determine their values and interest and design programs accordingly

Other Types