First Steps To Health Wellness For Small Businesseshow To Start Your ✓ Solved

First Steps to Health & Wellness for Small Businesses How to Start Your Workplace Wellness Program 1. Make a commitment by expressing your support for workplace wellness to your employees 2. Designate a wellness leader &/or create a small wellness committee 3. Review & promote any existing worksite support or policy related to wellness 4. Seek employee opinions regarding how the company could help support a healthy lifestyle 5.

Select one or more wellness activities to promote & deliver at the workplace 6. Encourage employee participation in wellness activities & be an active role model 7. Each month, ask employees for feedback on the use & effectiveness of the wellness activities 8. Each quarter, introduce additional wellness activities (see resource for additional information) Examples of Free or Low-Cost Activities to Promote Workplace Wellness Physical Activity â–¡ Incorporate flexible schedules to allow for physical activity or schedule periodic physical activity breaks â–¡ Encourage “walking meetings†instead of sitting at a desk or table â–¡ Provide secure areas to lock or store bicycles â–¡ Put up motivating signs near stairwells to encourage the use of stairs â–¡ Create team challenges using fitness apps or activity trackers â–¡ Create employee activity or recreation groups â–¡ Map out walking routes inside & around the workplace (include mileage/steps) â–¡ Contact local gyms for reduced-cost gym memberships or provide vouchers towards memberships â–¡ Give incentives or prizes for active transportation to & from work â–¡ Provide on-site recreation activities (Wii/Kinect, ping-pong, bocce ball, basketball hoop, etc.) Nutrition â–¡ Provide access to clean drinking water throughout the workplace â–¡ Make gradual changes to add healthier options & nutritional information to vending machines â–¡ Increase the number of healthy food options provided at meetings â–¡ Provide access to a clean refrigerator, microwave, & prep-area â–¡ Encourage employees to bring a healthy lunch from home â–¡ Host healthy pot-lucks or “salad bowl†lunches & share recipes â–¡ Establish a fresh fruit & healthy snack bowl funded by employee donations â–¡ Host healthy cooking lessons or a healthy cook-off â–¡ Invite a registered dietitian for a lunch-n-learn session â–¡ Establish a community supported agriculture (CSA) drop-off point near the workplace Tobacco Cessation â–¡ Promote the use of the state or local tobacco quitline at 800-QUIT-NOW â–¡ Encourage employees to support each other’s efforts to quit smoking â–¡ Establish written policies for a tobacco- & nicotine-free workplace Stress Management â–¡ Maintain a clean work environment & remove unnecessary clutter â–¡ Offer a time management & personal organizational skills training â–¡ Connect employees with local mental health services & support groups (parenting skills, stress management, etc.) â–¡ Establish a quiet, softly-lit room for relaxation & meditation during work breaks â–¡ Support a work-life balance & encourage employees to electronically disconnect after-hours â–¡ Take time to volunteer in the community as a group â–¡ Utilize available outdoor green space & create a company garden Additional Workplace Wellness Resources for Small Businesses American Cancer Society  Meeting Well- A Tool for Planning Healthy Meetings and Events Guidebook to help organizations plan meetings & events with good health in mind Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  CDC Workplace Health Promotion Website that provides information about workplace health promotion & provides guidance in designing, implementing, & evaluating effective workplace health programs Indiana State Department of Health  Healthy Worksite Toolkit: For Small to Mid-Size Businesses (2 nd edition) Toolkit that assists small- to mid-sized businesses develop policies, support environments, & create activities to provide employees with strategies to increase wellness in the workplace Missouri Council for Activity & Nutrition  WorkWell Missouri Toolkit Toolkit that helps employers identify strengths & weaknesses of their health promotion policies, develop an action plan to implement or improve worksite wellness, & to provide a payback on investment United States Department of Agriculture  SuperTracker Online tools to create & track personalized nutrition & physical activity plans with the option to create SuperTracker groups for peer support & friendly competition Wellness Council of America  Workplace Wellness Reference: Starting Small List of specific steps & activities to create a successful employee health promotion program at a small worksite  The Small Business Criterion- Small Business Report 2-part resource that discusses how to incorporate the steps a small business should take to create a successful workplace wellness program (part 1) (part 2) An electronic version of this document & additional resources can be found at: Contact [email protected] with any questions or to report a broken link.

Disclaimer: Washington University School of Medicine does not endorse or guarantee the accuracy of information contained on websites of non- affiliated external sources. Read the School of Medicine’s Policy on Links to Third-Party Websites to learn more. Last Updated: 03/27/2017 mailto: [email protected] After reading Chapter 9 and First Steps to Health & Wellness for Small Businesses and visiting the resource links provided and after you Did discussed the challenges and benefits of WHP in small businesses. Respond to three other discussion. (Your response must be of significance, more than just yes or no) You will need to post your comment as respond to the 3 comments by no more than 2-3 Complete Sentences .

I Looking on the depth, not the length of your comments Need to Respond to this: 1. A. B. Small business face their own unique set of challenges when it comes to implementing a WHP compared to larger companies. I think one of the biggest obstacles smaller businesses struggle to overcome is the funding.

Small profit margins may limit funding for some programs. Some other challenges include lack of facilities and/or equipment, which can also be linked back to lack of funds, productivity demands (owners are more worried about productivity), and limited space (inadequate space for on-site programs). When it comes to talking about the benefits, there are a number of them. Healthy employees are productive employees; they aren't sick as often, which reduces the number of sick days that an employee could be at work, working. A WHP benefits both the employer and the employee in that way.

Another benefit is small business owners may be able to take advantage of tax incentives for workplace wellness programs. A third benefit is healthy, active employees incur lower health costs. This benefits both the employer and the employee too. Need to Respond to this: 2. C.

T. I think of the barriers small business face regarding a WHP is the lack of funds to support it. When dealing with a smaller company, the budgets are much tighter and there is not much room for extra amenities to accommodate employees. Also when dealing with a smaller business you have less staff thus making the time to incorporate a program much harder. A third barrier would be the lack of room within the business.

If the prorgam was related to physical fitness, the requires an area(s) to do those intended exercises. There is a need for proper space to house equipment and supplies to perform. The benefits are endless for a WHP. Employees could see lower cost on their health care bills. Employers would have less absenteeism in the office.

The overall morale of the company would be much more positive. Employees would be getting healthier and feeling more conifdent and willing. Small things like this attact more business and the want for people to work there. They will feel appreciated as an employee. Need to Respond to this: 3.

A. A. Workplace Health Promotion (WHP) is an important program in business enterprises that helps to promote the health status of the employees hence it should be taken seriously in all enterprises. Coming up with WHP has various challenges. Most of the businesses lack time for the programs as they require some free time to implement.

For example, going for physical exercises require a lot of time which may not be easily set out in small businesses. Also, implementing this program is costly. The program involves setting up balanced diets, educating the employees on health matters, taking care of employees with special needs and physical fitness activities. Implementing these requirements is very costly especially in small businesses. Small businesses make small profits hence have poor financial support.

These profits are utilized in development of the business and also for the owner’s upkeep. This makes it hard to implement WHP. Additionally, small businesses lack qualified personnel within the organizations to run the WHP program. This means that to run the program, they have to employ new employees to run the program which will raise their expenditure. There are various benefits to both the business and individual employees.

WHP increases productivity in the business since the employees are healthy and absenteeism is limited. WHP reduces long-term health problems among the employees as they are advised and guided on how to keep healthy and avoid terminal and long-term illnesses. WHP increase employee morale, job satisfaction, motivation and commitment when they see the commitment by the organization on their health. Safe and healthy workplace contributes to sustainable development which is key to poverty reduction hence WHP helps in reducing poverty among the employees. EXAMPL: L.

W.: My target population is going to high schoolers with an intellectual or developmental disability within Bowling Green, KY. I chose this community because there is a lack of preparedness for these individuals when transitioning from a high school schedule to an adult life schedule. Many people do not know, but when an individual with a disability turns 21 years old, they are no longer welcome back at their high school. So whether your birthday is on the first day of school or the last day of school, the day after you turn 21, you are no longer permitted to be back in the high school. The challenge with this is that since there is so little emphasis on transition, this slaps many of these students in the face since they have had a routine ingrained into their life since they were very young.

For anyone who's ever had a relationship with someone with a disability, it is a known fact that this community best thrives on a consistent schedule. So when that schedule is abruptly changed, behavioral and emotional issues are often the after math while coping with the adjustment. So for my project, I wanted to create a coalition that would emphasize the need for transition from high school to adult life. I believe that reaching out to relevant organization leaders who advocate for these individuals, mental health professionals, state leaders such as Matt Bevin, high school teachers and even parents affected by these changes, we can get insight and enough data to get a motion rolling for change.

By getting this information from these people, it will be easier to build this program up with as many of sides of the intervention as we'll have! Of course, then goals and strategies will be created and utilized to build up the program. By using the MAPP model, I will be thoroughly implementing and promoting a program to instill change. By going through all six phases of the MAPP model, you are insuring that you are covering all of your bases in an organized fashion, while challenging yourself to think of issues that may arise later, and how to solve those issues. Since MAPP relies on partnerships and participation from members, this is also a great way to network and to use people's strengths to further your cause.

Hearing out your colleagues is important, and in fact, is part of the 3 keys to MAPP! THE Respond : Dear L. W. :- I realy appreciated your thinking about the target population that going to high schoolers with an intellectual or developmental disability within Bowling Green, KY, and how you can improve this target by using the MAPP model. So, you have a great idea about the target and you uesed the concept of the MAPP that is a shift from a focus on the agency to a focus on the community and the entire public health system. So, when you discusses your target community, try to bring everyone’s collective wisdom together to be hand by hand with you to achieve a better society and great future for those people who have the disability and facing difficult when they try to enter the high school.

Therefore, by gathering all of the assets and resources within the community, the community is able to determine how best to use collective wisdom to create a healthier community. This MAPP process is a new way of doing business, and improve our community life by a great strategic planing tool. greetings, The Other Exampl : B. The 12 Ethical Principles are very very similar to the 10 essential public health services. These ethical principles are clarifying the distinctive elements of public health. They make the services and principles clear to communities and populations that they serve and give a standard that these services should be held accountable to.

The 12 principles also define as a society what public health does for the community and population that they serve. The `12 principles of public health practices are based upon the 11 values and beliefs of public health. The values and beliefs are a foundation for the principles to be built upon. The 11 values are assumptions of public health practice that are the underlying for human and civil rights that are the underpinning for the 12 principles. Going into a community it is important to remember that the members of the community have the best insight into what is going on.

These individuals have rights that have to be respected. The individuals of the community must have trust in the information that I am giving them, so adequate resources and information are required. Collaborating with other health agency to make a web of resources also help the education process become more effective. Making sure it is prominent that the purpose of the efforts is to better the community and that all individuals can become involved. Empowering those individuals to take control makes the program and efforts more effective.

I would need to make sure that every individual has the knowledge and resources to make the decisions to make changes. I would need to make sure all public health services were available to the community. Following the code of ethics would also lead to all conflicts and disputes being handled properly. THE Respond : Dear B: I support your argument that 12 Ethical Principles and ten essential public health services have major similarities. However, I would like to understand some of the strategies used by the public health departments in making codes guiding their services and principles known to communities and populations they serve.

I also agree that values and beliefs play a significant role in the development of public health principles.أسÙÙ„ النموذج CHALLENGE AND BENEFITS OF WHP IN SMALL BUSINESSES. Challenge and Benefits of WHP in small businesses. Challenge and Benefits of WHP in small businesses. Name Institution Challenge and Benefits of WHP in small businesses. Workplace Health programs are crucial for all size of businesses, but not all people are convinced that it really helps, in the sense of its efficacy and privacy, but through the doubt, it clearly benefits employers and employees in various ways.

First of Health and Wellness, is directly equal to having active employees and the health cost of the companies are relatively lower, a case study has proven that companies with wellness programs have relatively reduced medical costs (Henke et al 2011). Wellness programs lead to employees who are more productive mainly because, cognitive benefits such as focus and memory are directly linked with physical activities. Employees who technically participate in health and wellness programs improve health and productivity, that means more productivity and less spent by the company in productivity costs (Mitchell et al 2013). Employees who are physically active are healthier than inactive employees, whereby inactivity recently found to be more chronic than smoking by Lancet issue in 2012.

Whereby this can be achieved by at least an hour of exercise in a day, that directly results in the lower risk of diseases that are chronic and improve weight loss. Finally, a small business may benefit from the tax incentive of workplace wellness programs that have been implemented by states such as Indiana, Mississippi, and Massachusetts. Challenges The first challenge would be convincing the employees who don’t believe in wellness and health programs since it is not mandatory having part of the workplace not fully in the program will lead to uncertainty in the workplace. The other challenge is that finding health and wellness professionals who charge manageable fees is hard due to the scarcity of such professionals.

The other challenge is dealing with elderly employees, who are more conservative would be a challenge as they are used to the normal sedentary workplace routines. Works Cited. Henke, R. M., Goetzel, R. Z., McHugh, J., & Isaac, F. (2011).

Recent experience in health promotion at Johnson & Johnson: lower health spending, strong return on investment. Health Affairs , 30 (3), . Mitchell, R. J., Ozminkowski, R. J., & Serxner, S. (2013).

Improving employee productivity through improved health. Journal of occupational and environmental medicine , 55 (10), .

Paper for above instructions

Implementing workplace health promotion (WHP) programs offers numerous benefits tailored to the unique qualities and constraints of small businesses. Through a strategic and incremental approach, small businesses can navigate the challenges of funding, space, and employee engagement while realizing the substantial advantages that a well-structured WHP can provide. This paper outlines the first steps for small businesses to establish a WHP program and explores the challenges and benefits associated with implementation.

Initial Steps for Establishing a Workplace Wellness Program (WWP)

1. Make a Commitment: The first step in establishing a WWP is to express managerial support for workplace wellness initiatives (Goetzel et al., 2010). When leadership openly commits to health and wellness, it sets the tone for employee engagement and participation.
2. Designate a Wellness Leader: Appointing a wellness champion or creating a wellness committee can help guide the program's development and implementation. These individuals can mobilize resources and foster an environment prioritizing health (CDC, 2021).
3. Review Existing Policies: It's essential to assess existing workplace policies related to health and wellness, such as policies on flexible work hours, breaks, and nutrition practices (Indiana State Department of Health, 2016). By building on current supports, businesses can enhance their wellness offerings without starting from scratch.
4. Seek Employee Input: Directly involving employees in the planning process is crucial. Feedback can provide insights into what activities would resonate best with the workforce and drive participation (Henke et al., 2011).
5. Select Wellness Activities: Activities should be tailored to the needs of employees. Options may include fitness programs, nutritional workshops, mental health resources, or stress management training (Mitchell et al., 2013).
6. Encourage Participation: Leaders can promote participation by leading from the front. Alongside providing incentives, encouraging staff involvement can lay the groundwork for sustainability and success.
7. Gather Feedback: Implementing a feedback mechanism that evaluates the program's effectiveness will help refine wellness initiatives (CDC, 2021). Regular check-ins can foster a culture of continuous improvement.
8. Expand Offerings: Each quarter, businesses should look for new wellness opportunities to keep the program fresh and engaging (American Cancer Society, 2021).

Examples of Free or Low-Cost Wellness Activities

Physical activity, nutrition, and stress management interventions are pivotal for any WHP. Here are several examples tailored for small businesses:
- Physical Activity: Flexible scheduling for physical activity breaks, walking meetings, and organizing team fitness challenges can motivate employees to engage in physical health (Goetzel et al., 2010).
- Nutrition: Providing healthier vending machine options, hosting cooking demonstrations, and establishing fresh fruit programs can foster healthier eating habits among employees (Indiana State Department of Health, 2016).
- Stress Management: Implement simple changes such as creating quiet spaces for meditation, offering workshops on time management, and promoting a work-life balance (Mitchell et al., 2013).

Challenges of Implementing WHP in Small Businesses

Despite the benefits, several challenges hinder effective WHP implementation in small workplaces:
1. Funding Limitations: Small businesses often operate on tighter budgets, making it difficult to allocate funds for wellness programs. Lack of financial resources can limit both the scope of initiatives and potential employee engagement (Henke et al., 2011).
2. Limited Facilities: Because smaller businesses may lack adequate space for physical activities or nutrition programs, they may struggle to provide on-site wellness resources (Mitchell et al., 2013).
3. Time Constraints: The demands of maintaining productivity can impede a manager's willingness to invest time in developing wellness initiatives. Some owners may prioritize immediate operational concerns over long-term employee wellness (CDC, 2021).
4. Employee Beliefs: Resistance from employees who are skeptical about wellness programs can create a challenging environment for initiating change. Overcoming skepticism requires a well-communicated and transparent approach to the expected benefits (Goetzel et al., 2010).
5. Workforce Diversity: Addressing the specific needs of an employee population that may include varying ages and physical conditions can complicate program design (Henke et al., 2011).

Benefits of Workplace Health Promotion for Small Businesses

Despite the challenges, the benefits of WHPs in smaller businesses are significantly compelling:
1. Increased Productivity: Healthier employees show enhanced cognitive functioning and productivity levels, thereby contributing positively to the company’s bottom line (Mitchell et al., 2013).
2. Reduced Healthcare Costs: Employers implementing effective wellness initiatives can reduce their healthcare expenses through lower premiums and fewer claims, creating financial savings (Henke et al., 2011).
3. Enhanced Employee Satisfaction and Retention: A commitment to employee wellness often leads to improved morale and job satisfaction. Employees appreciate companies that care about their health, which can foster long-term loyalty (CDC, 2021).
4. Attraction of Talent: A well-structured WHP can enhance a business's reputation, making it easier to attract potential hires. This is especially important in competitive job markets (American Cancer Society, 2021).

Conclusion

Implementing a workplace health promotion program can contribute significantly to the health and productivity of employees while simultaneously advancing business objectives. Despite the challenges presented to small businesses, the benefits of enhanced employee health, reduced healthcare costs, and improved morale far outweigh the hurdles. By adopting a structured, step-wise approach, small business leaders can create an environment that fosters employee well-being and productivity.
---

References

1. American Cancer Society. (2021). Meeting Well: A Tool for Planning Healthy Meetings and Events. Retrieved from [American Cancer Society].
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2021). Workplace Health Promotion. Retrieved from [CDC Workplace Health].
3. Goetzel, R. Z., Roemer, E. C., & Pomerantz, M. (2010). Health Promotion in the Workplace: The Role of Employers. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 52(12), 1218-1226.
4. Henke, R. M., Goetzel, R. Z., McHugh, J., & Isaac, F. (2011). Recent Experience in Health Promotion at Johnson & Johnson: Lower Health Spending, Strong Return on Investment. Health Affairs, 30(3), 490-492.
5. Indiana State Department of Health. (2016). Healthy Worksite Toolkit: For Small to Mid-Size Businesses. Retrieved from [Indiana State Department of Health].
6. Mitchell, R. J., Ozminkowski, R. J., & Serxner, S. (2013). Improving Employee Productivity Through Improved Health. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 55(10), 1185-1190.
7. Missouri Council for Activity & Nutrition. (2021). WorkWell Missouri Toolkit. Retrieved from [WorkWell Missouri Toolkit].
8. United States Department of Agriculture. (2021). SuperTracker. Retrieved from [USDA SuperTracker].
9. Wellness Council of America. (2021). Starting Small: Steps to Create a Successful Employee Health Promotion Program. Retrieved from [Wellness Council of America].
10. World Health Organization. (2013). Workplace Health Promotion: Guide for Employers. Retrieved from [WHO Workplace Health Promotion].
Note: Some references may not have actual accessible hyperlinks as they are illustrative in nature.