Health Handouts : Employee Wellness Program Ideas

Want some wellness program ideas and wellness policy ideas to get you started? Or perhaps you want to jump start or better upon your current wellness program? The list below provides ‘best practices’ that are able to help meet any wellness program budget! The Workplace Health Promotion Program ideas are divided into topic areas.

General Wellness Progam Ideas

• Conduct an Employee Needs & Interest Survey
• Design a Worksite Health Promotion Program Committee
• Select medical programs that cover expenditures for weight management and smoking cessation
• Waive co-pay or reimburse for preventive medical care visits
• Put up pamphlets on a variety of wellness subject matters for workers to take
• Design a wellness resource center or library with videos, books, magazines, DVD’s on a variety of subject matters of interest to employees
• Identify employees who are mentors or champions for healthy activities and ask them to present or to list as a contact for other employees
• Plan and encourage periodic or regular educational sessions.
• Establish monthly educational sessions on the national health observance topic
• Display a Wellness Bulletin Board & update it monthly
• Display messages from national health observances during the month
• Publish healthy tips in newsletters, paycheck stuffers, bulletin boards, etc.
• Sponsor a benefits fair
• Offer organization fitness and healthy eating challenges
• Offer business wellbeing and health fairs or other on-Site activities

Nutrition Programs

• Provide free, healthy snacks for workers (fruit, nuts, popcorn)
• Provide healthy meal choices in cafeterias and at organization events
• Offer information to employees about the nutritional content of food served in the cafeteria
• Create a fresh fruit “snack basket” in the breakroom or cafeteria
• Stock vending machines with healthier options
• Subsidize healthy foods in the cafeteria or vending machines (10¡ apples may be more appealing than $1.00 candy bars)
• Begin a weekly or monthly healthy lunch club
• Have brochures available on a variety of healthy eating topics
• Include nutrition articles in organization newsletters
• Provide a healthy food tasting contest Free
• Schedule educational sessions at lunchtime-time on a variety of diet issues of interest
• Develop an employee healthy meal cookbook. Either sell the cookbook and use profits for programs, or purchase a cookbook for all employees

Weight Loss Programs / Weight Management Programs

• Offer flexible work schedules so that staff members have the potential to take part in weight-loss programs
• Partially fund registration expenditures for weight-management programs
• Offer a support group to help staff members who are trying to lose weight
• Locate registered dieticians near your workplace as a resource for staff members who want information on healthy eating, meal planning or weight management
• Provide individual counseling for employees trying to lose weight
• Provide workplace fitness and weight-management programs through your local hospital, Weight Watchers, TOPS or local, registered dietician
• Schedule an educational session on diet myths and healthy eating

Physical Activity Programs

• Allow flexible work schedules to encourage exercise
• Create a fitness space with aerobic equipment, and weights
• Establish accessible walking paths, trails, and/or bike routes
• Urge staff members to walk more by parking farther away from the entrance
• Create a gym with aerobic equipment, weights, aerobic classes, fitness professionals
• Have walking meetings
• Make the stairways more appealing (carpet, fresh paint, artwork, posters)
• Provide reduced fitness center membership fees to all workers
• Give facilities for workers to secure bikes
• Schedule 5 – ten minute stretch breaks during the day
• Partially fund gym membership for employees who take part a minimal number of days per week (ex., 3 days per week)
• Support lunchtime walking/running clubs or business sports team
• Urge stairwell use and incentives/rewards
• Install a basketball hoop outside
• Promote & support neighborhood walks or fitness activities
• Urge walking during breaks and other off-time periods
• Give periodic fitness incentive programs to encourage physical activity
• Have educational sessions on fitness activities

Smoking Cessation Programs / Tobacco Cessation Programs

• Create a tobacco-free grounds
• Develop a smoke-free workplace
• Encourage the use of 1-800-QUIT-NOW, North Carolina’s free Tobacco Use Quitline. Or check www.QuitlineNC.com
• Reimburse for tobacco replacement products
• Subsidize the expense of tobacco cessation sessions
• Provide handouts and information on health effects from tobacco use and smoking cessation
• Have awareness sessions to arouse staff members to try to quit tobacco use
• Schedule workplace tobacco cessation workshops

Employee Health Screening

• Discount healthcare insurance premiums or lower co-payments for workers who participate in screenings and who participate in managing their risk factors
• Install Blood Pressure (BP) monitoring equipment
• Offer flu shots for workers and family members
• Offer Health Risk Assessments to all workers, including counseling and follow-up
• Provide periodic Blood Pressure screenings and follow-up
• Offer periodic screenings for cholesterol, blood glucose, body composition, etc.

Stress Management Programs / Work Life Balance Programs

• Allow flexible schedules for family/work life balance
• Offer and encourage an Employee Assistance Program(EAP)
• Offer information on substance abuse prevention
• Provide pamphlets and information on stress management and mental health
• Offer pamphlets and information on work life balance, such as financial planning, childcare, parenting, elder care, etc.
• Offer supervisor and manager training on communication, relationship building, organization stressors, etc.
• Evaluate business policies and work schedules to identify business stressors
• Review the Employee Assistance Program to make sure it is meeting the needs of the staff members and company
• Schedule educational sessions on stress management and work life balance
• Have courses on relaxation, stress management, and work life balance topics