en percent of employees consume 80 percent of the health-care costs at most
companies. They are the ones at the highest risk for common medical conditions
such as diabetes, high cholesterol, and heart disease, and are the least likely
to change unhealthy behaviors. "In order for a wellness program to be
successful and have significant financial impact, it has to be robust enough to
engage that 10 percent," says David Hunnicutt, president of the Wellness
Councils of America, a nonprofit health-promotion organization in Omaha,
Nebraska.
The primary goal of any wellness program should be to return the highest-risk
people to low-risk status while helping the other 90 percent maintain a
low-health-risk lifestyle, he says. The problem is how to get that 10 percent to
participate in managing their wellness.
Ironically, those with the lowest health risk are the easiest to connect
with, says Roslyn Stone, COO of Corporate Wellness, Inc., a health services
company in Mount Kisco, New York. "The healthiest 10 percent of the population
will come to anything related to wellness because it’s a primary part of their
lifestyle," she says. Unfortunately, they are the least likely to need the
programs, and there is little cost benefit to gaining their participation. "You
don’t need to be concerned about the blood pressure of marathoners."
For a wellness program to pay off, you have to reach those people who would
benefit from some change in their health regime. "In order to see a return on
your investment, you need to reach the people who wouldn’t normally join
health clubs or check their cholesterol without your encouragement," Stone
says. She encourages her clients to target the next easiest group to reach--those
employees who would benefit from a wellness program and who can see its
importance to their lifestyle.
To do that, she says, you have to be creative and focused. Wellness programs
should be free, convenient, fun, new, and relevant to employees’ needs. To
find out what those needs are, survey employees with a list of possible programs
and ask which ones they would attend, she says. "Be sure that you don’t
include things on the list that you aren’t willing or able to provide due to
costs, culture, or services in your area," she warns.
For example, she had a client that asked employees if they were interested in
on-site mammography. One hundred percent of those women over 35 said yes, but
management later realized that the program would be too expensive and canceled
it. "They lost all credibility," Stone says. She fears that some of the
women may have put off getting mammograms in anticipation of the event.
The survey will tell you what people want and enable you to target a few key
programs for each quarter, she says. Once you know what you are offering,
inundate employees--and their spouses--with marketing materials to let them
know about upcoming events. "Women make 80 percent of the health-care
decisions for families," she says. That’s why it’s important to mail
information to employees’ homes or include it with paychecks. When wives can
encourage their husbands to take advantage of a wellness program, participation
is greatly increased.
And whenever possible, offer tantalizing freebies to lure them. "Food
always gets people’s attention," Stone says. "It’s worth it to invest in
a plate of muffins--or even Krispy Kremes--if it will get them to participate."
Then, once you put the effort into getting maximum involvement, make the most
of it by offering the most comprehensive information or screenings. For example,
a cholesterol screening, which costs $10 to $15 per person, checks for five
different health conditions, whereas a chemical screen, which costs $17, checks
for 24 conditions, including diabetes and cardiac issues. "For a few more
dollars, you can get a lot more information."
Hunnicutt takes his approach to wellness participation one step further. He
believes maximum participation won’t come only as a result of aggressive
marketing. "Employees need to be held accountable for their health decisions
and the resulting costs associated with failing to take care of themselves,"
he says. "Seventy percent of diseases are preventable with lifestyle
modifications."
He feels that if a person is going to participate in a benefits package,
which he estimates costs a company roughly $4,000 per person per year, the
company has the right to ask that person to participate in a series of common
health screens or a health appraisal. "You can’t tell employees that they
have to participate in a screening," he says, "but you can make it a
condition of taking part in a benefits or incentive program."
To protect privacy, the screens are conducted by a third-party administrator
that provides the employers with an aggregate report of the overall health and
risk levels of the company, keeping the individuals’ information confidential.
This way, employees find out which health problems they are personally at risk
for and can get help right away instead of waiting until symptoms appear, he
says. In addition, the company can implement targeted wellness programs, which
are more likely to be taken advantage of because people are aware of their
conditions.
"Employers need to be more savvy about managing their health-care costs and
linking health to business objectives," Hunnicutt says. "This is the first
step."
Workforce, December 2002, pp. 74-76 -- Subscribe Now!
= Member Only
