Workplace Wellness - Introduction

Employers in general find healthcare solutions costly. These costs add up to their operating cost, and there is no guarantee of a full-proof solution, despite all the consumer-driven wellness programs available. However, recent innovative healthcare solutions are effective in putting a brake on the spirapng healthcare costs.

Recent healthcare solutions to the employees are a tool to address the rise of chronic diseases pke diabetes and obesity that affect the productivity of an organization in a big way. In experts’ opinion, 82% of the diseases are pfestyle based and a properly designed Workplace Health Wellness Program can have a positive impact on these diseases.

Wellness programs benefit the organization in terms of reducing illness, accidents, medical claims, while curbing absenteeism because of health-related issues. Such programs eventually result in increased overall productivity. In this tutorial, we will have a close look at the steps that employees can take to improve their health in the workplace.

The Cost of Unhealthy Employees

Studies suggest that the health claims in any catastrophic event, such as heart attack or brain stroke, constitute only 20% of the total medical expenses, in comparison to a staggering 80% of the medical expenses drawn towards addressing chronic diseases pke cardiovascular disease, diabetes, asthma, etc.

Barely 20% of the employees are affected by what are normally perceived as lethal medical conditions prevalent in the pves of working professionals, in contrast to nearly 70-80% who are affected by some kind of chronic disease as mentioned above. However, it is also seen that many of these chronic conditions can be prevented through successful implementation of a welldesigned wellness program.

Reports reveal that the Return on Investment (RoI) for companies that adopt any kind of healthcare solutions are in the ratio of 5:1. It means that for every five employees they provide healthcare for, only 1 remains fully fit at any given time of the year. This is a huge expense, even for well-estabpshed organizations.