Why WORKPLACE WELLNESS

Escalating health care costs continue to remain an issue of great concern for many health professionals, insurance companies and employers. There is no question a huge portion of health care costs are contributed to unhealthy lifestyle choices. Effective workplace wellness pro-grams will produce positive results in both Return on Investment plus Value on Investment!

The Trend

The overall health of our society has been on a negative spiral for many years. Even with a person’s behavior as the largest determinant of health and despite the fact that most chronic diseases are preventable, our society has slipped beyond an acceptable level of health.

 

 

 

 

 

The Future

Unfortunately for organizations, the negative health trend will create financial hardships that will impact and change the way business is conducted. Those organizations that do not implement proactive workplace wellness strategies will feel the reality of continued rising health care costs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are workplace wellness programs really a good
Investment of an organization’s time and money?

YES!

Return on Investment (ROI)

From a financial ROI standpoint, workplace wellness programs are a good investment. Due to already high health care costs, it does not take much improvement in employees’ risk factors to pay for the cost of the program. In general, if an organization can lower health risks by even 0.5% over three years, the cost of a typical program will be returned in savings. The financial return of a workplace wellness program can be realized through lower health care costs, reduced use of health care benefits, fewer work’s comp/disability claims. It is estimated that organizations investing in workplace well-ness can expect to see a return of $3.00 - $6.00 for every $1.00 invested. In one study of the more than 30 wellness pro-grams in large organizations (including those in the chart) which were analyzed for cost outcomes, 29 proved to be cost effective.

 

VALUE-OF-INVESTMENT (VOI)

Besides the financial return-on-investment, an organization that invests in workplace wellness should also consider another benefit – the value-of-investment. There are many indirect benefits of having a healthy workplace. These valuable benefits includes reduction of absenteeism, increased employee productivity and a rise in employee morale and loyalty.

Offering a comprehensive wellness program to employees also shows caring and commitment from the organization. This is something that is hard to quantify, but is of a value that spreads among employ-ees. This reputation also helps attract and retain quality employees.