Does your company have the right plan for wellness? Follow these steps.

As wellness becomes more respected as a means of moderating health care costs, more and more employers are looking to develop, launch and execute wellness programs. As any wellness professional would agree, this is great news! A recent national survey conducted by The Wellness Councils of America (WELCOA) found than 90 percent of businesses they surveyed, currently offer some form of wellness programming. Hooray!

The not so great news, according to the survey, is that these programs are not as strong as they could be.  A strong and successful wellness program must be carefully planned before it is executed. Unfortunately, according to this survey, over 90 percent of these businesses are simply offering activity-centered programs with little thought to the strategy necessary to promote the right results. These programs typically involve interventions, such as yoga, or Weight Watchers@Work, with little planning, strategy or evaluation measures included. In my experience, some companies claiming to offer wellness programs have the right intentions but the execution is not complete. Furthermore, when companies say they are offering wellness but aren’t reaping the rewards, they incorrectly believe that wellness programs don’t work.

In addition to setting up a long- and short-term strategy, this plan MUST be supported by an innate culture of wellness in the workplace. A company, for instance, with a plethora of unhealthy food in the cafeteria or vending machines which provide options that are high in fat, salt and sugar may make it more difficult for employees to achieve true lifestyle changes. 

Another hallmark of a strong and a positive result-generating wellness program is that it is data driven. In this case, the rationale, activities and the benchmarks are all evidence based using data derived from health care costs and EAP utilization, for example. Furthermore, evaluation methods must be set up in the beginning stages to be sure that results are evaluated and measured.

Developing a strong wellness program is better for employees (and the employer!) than the sporadic plans that are offered at so many companies, but they require clear intention and planning.  To design strategic initiatives, which best enhance employees' health and help employers manage health care costs, consider utilizing the following 7 criteria, offered by WELCOA and supported by research as effective in promoting appropriate behavior change and cost avoidance: 

1. Capture senior level support

2. Create a cohesive wellness team

3. Collect data

4. Craft an operating plan

5. Choose appropriate interventions

6. Create supportive environments

7. Carefully evaluate outcomes

We've seen these steps work for our clients and we are sure they can work for you! For more information on WELCOA’s Seven Benchmarks of Success visit

http://www.welcoa.org/wellworkplace/index.php?category=16 or our website at www.wellnessworkdays.com .