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Why Invest in Health Promotion?
We’ve excerpted this information
from “Healthy Workforce 2010: An Essential Health Promotion
Sourcebook for Employers, Large and Small,” published by the
Partnership For Prevention in the fall of 2001.
Reason one: Improve productivity.
- Health Promotion activities are likely to yield greater
returns from increased employee activity than from medical
care cost savings.
- The top 4 reasons employers give for instituting health
promotion programs are to:
–Improve employee morale
–Retain good workers
–Attract good employees
–Improve productivity
- Savings from a small decrease in reduced absenteeism
alone can more than offset the cost of a health promotion
program.
- A 1998 analysis of five absenteeism studies determined
average program savings of almost $5 for every $1 spent
on the program.
Reason two: Lower healthcare
costs.
- Medically high-risk employees are high-cost employees.
- Lowest costs are associated with individuals with only
one or two health risk factors, including smoking, obesity,
alcohol consumption, lack of exercise and exposure to
UV radiation.
- A collaborative study involving the Chrysler Corporation
and the United Auto Workers Union showed that those with
unhealthy weights had 143 percent higher hospital inpatient
utilization than those with healthy weights.
- A 1998 analysis of eight health promotion programs showed
an average reduction of healthcare expenses of $3.35 for
every $1 spent on the program.
Reason three: Enhance your
corporate Image and long-term interests by promoting health
beyond the worksite.
- There is a direct connection between the health of the
community you serve and the success of your business.
- Employers want their communities to provide:
–A pool of healthy, potential new employees.
–Productive current employees.
–Basic medical coverage for all local residents.
- Investing in health promotion enables your company to:
–Demonstrate social responsibility.
–Directly and indirectly promote the health of retirees,
families of employees, consumers and potential employees.
Reason four: Help America
achieve its health objectives for the year 2010.
- Healthy People 2010 is a national initiative focused
on:
–Helping individuals of all ages increase life expectancy
and improve their quality of life.
–Eliminating health disparities among different segments
of the population.
- Since most adults spend a majority of their daytime
hours at work, the workplace will be a crucial site of
support in their quest to achieve and maintain health.
- Without business support, Healthy People 2010 will not
be able to achieve its important goals.
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