Health Promotion Programs

Employee wellness or health promotion programs are available in about 80% of companies with 50 or more employees. These programs have been designed to reduce health care costs in most cases. However, many companies have found additional benefits in retention, positive attitudes toward the company, and an increase in productivity.

Planning a good health promotion program is an adventure in itself that requires the cooperation of employees, middle and upper management as well as anyone in a decision-making, leadership position. The planning process includes several specific, chronological steps that can be used by any employer to insure the success of employees as they participate in your program.

Health Fitness Ministries provides consultation services in the planning, implementation and maintenance of health promotion programs using these ten steps.

1. A Planning Committee is the central unit of any program and must be made up of representatives from a cross-section of prospective participants and leadership.

2. The interests and needs of participants must be assessed early to steer the Planning Committee in useful directions.

3. A mission statement is useful in establishing objectives and goals that can be measured to determine program successes.

4. A time schedule of important events and a line item budget for each event must be developed.

5. Participant success is encouraged whenever incentives are made available. Public recognition with the awarding of those incentives goes a long way toward program success.

6. Many commercial and private resources are available in the health promotion field. A good review of these sources will satisfy program designers they are on the right track.

7. Few programs survive without a strong marketing effort that makes people aware that the program is there and motivates them to become, and continue to be, successful participants.

8. Program implementation is almost a natural outcome of all the above. It brings everything together: speakers, activities, evaluations, announcements and advertising.

9. Program evaluations of attitudes and impacts need to be conducted on a regular schedule. The community image of your program, leadership responses, participating and non-participating employee feelings provide useful input to these evaluations. A good evaluation will help motivate participants, measure progress, and modify the program to meet new needs and interests.

10. Program modifications occur as directed by the results of your program evaluation. Health promotion programs should be designed to be flexible, not only to meet new needs and interests, but to create a challenging variety in program offerings.