The Power of Employee Well-Being

Employees are considered a company’s greatest asset and their health issues can dramatically affect the workplace. Employees who are not healthy have lower levels of productivity and higher health costs. According to the Corporate Wellness Magazine, every $1 invested in employee wellness programs yields roughly $4 in savings through reduced sick days, higher productivity and decreased overall health costs.

With all the regulatory changes and increases in health insurance premiums, forward thinking companies in East Africa are introducing wellness programs not only to combat the healthcare costs, but also to create workplaces that support holistic well-being of their employees beyond physical to include emotional and mental well-being.

Medical insurance schemes pay for curative treatment and numerous visits to the clinics. Wellness programs on the other hand, encourage preventive healthcare with a focus on avoiding prevalent health risks. Such a program typically comprises health risk assessments, intervention strategies to target identified health risks and trends, employee assistance programs to support holistic well-being and individual behavior modification for disease prevention and management.

Every corporate culture is different and therefore the wellness programs must be uniquely created. A comprehensive health and wellness program is well thought out, results oriented , effective and includes educational programs, individual coaching and resources designed to enhance employee health towards improved engagement, performance and productivity.

Here are top 10 Tips for designing and implementing an effective Employee Wellness Program

We thank The Guardian for publishing this article 0n 3rd February, 2016