Health Handouts : Measuring Program Results

Information to evaluate your program comes from regularly collected evaluation and follow-up data of your program that look at process and outcomes of your program.

The Worker Health Program has available a computerized case-management system which includes queries that allow simple assessment of process and outcome results at any point in time.

Process Assessment

Process assessment looks at the  Worksite Wellness Program’s influence as seen at various points in time.

Information that is gathered from the various forms that wellness staff members fill out ought to supply you with the following:

• How many staff members were screened?
• How many employees who were referred to a doctor went?
• How many workers who expressed interest in health improvement programs went?
• How many workers who were referred to health improvement programs went?
• How many employees who went to health improvement programs completed them?
• How many staff members are in follow-up caseload?

You can use this sort of process evaluation to evaluate and learn about the health of your program.

Outcome Evaluation

A central goal of the program is to improve the health of employees. Information on how to judge how well your program is meeting this goal is called “outcome evaluation” because you are evaluating the end results or outcome of your program.

In wellness programs, objectives are measured by specific (outcomes) behavior changes and reductions in health risk levels. Have staff members lowered their Blood Pressure? Have they lost weight? Are they working out more? Is alcohol consumption at a safe level? For example these are the types of questions you can ask to discover if you are reaching your objectives:

• For workers with elevated Blood Pressure (BP) (140 / 90 or higher or on medication) at assessment, what percentage have it under control (below 140 / 90) a year later?
• What is the change in average Blood Pressure levels among all staff members with high Blood Pressure 1 year after assessment? Two years later?
• For workers with elevated blood cholesterol levels (above 240) at screening, what percentage has reduced their cholesterol to borderline-high levels (200-239)?
• For staff members with borderline-elevated blood cholesterol levels, what percentages have reduced their cholesterol to the desirable range (below 200)?
• What is the change in average cholesterol levels among all workers with high and borderline-high blood cholesterol levels 1 year after evaluation? Two years later?
• For workers who were overweight at evaluation, what percentage have lost 20 pounds or more a year later? Ten pounds or more? What is the average weight loss?
• For workers who were tobacco users at evaluation, what percentages have quit smoking? For at least a year?
• For employees whose level of alcohol consumption put them at-risk at screening, what percentage have quit drinking alcohol? Are consuming alcohol at levels considered safe by CDC guidelines? Have reduced their drinking, but are still at-risk?
• For employees, what percentages are exercising at least three times a week for at least 20 minutes?
• If fitness levels were measured, what percentages have improved fitness?

Set a regular time such as every 6 months to look at which workers your program is reaching and how effective it is at supporting them lower their health risks. Use this information to make new decisions about how to direct your program efforts. Then make the change you need to better your program.

Some may feel that an assessment is a frill; it is not. Assessment is a significant part of a wellness program. You will need to be aware of what is working and what is not. Decision-makers who fund the program need to be updated on the success of the program. Evaluation will provide you with significant data to maintain and expand the program and convince management to continue to support the program.