Rising
healthcare costs are a major concern for many businesses, and learning how to
keep those costs low is important not just for the bottom line, but also for
improving employee health and, in turn, increasing productivity. As a result, many
companies have begun conducting workplace health assessments to identify where
and how meaningful improvements can be made. Before an assessment can be
conducted, though, management needs to understand its purpose and value.
What does a
workplace health assessment involve?
The purpose of
an assessment is to gather data about all the factors that have an impact on
the health of employees while they're on the job, and then to determine which
of those factors are good and which ones need to be improved. It's also a time
to consider new programs like health incentives and interventions that can help
improve employee health, decrease worker absenteeism, increase productivity and
decrease overall health costs. Sometimes, those interventions can be as simple
as upgrading lighting; in other cases, a complete ergonomic overhaul of an
office may be in order.
At the end of
the assessment, the management team will be in a much better position to set
goals, develop strategies, and set aside time and money to achieve established
end points.
Individual and
Organizational Effort
Both the
employees and the employer and management teams have an influence over the
effectiveness of any workplace health assessment and initiative. On an
individual level, workers have their own personal behaviors or health issues
such as smoking or obesity that can have a direct impact on their absentee
rates as well as their healthcare costs. From an organizational standpoint,
health benefits have a significant impact by determining how affordable it is
for employees to get the care they need to remain healthy. The employer also
influences design elements that can affect health, such as ventilation systems
and furnishings.
Depending on
the size of your company, a health assessment can be fairly complex and
extensive, but the savings achieved through such a large-scale project can be a
tremendous boon to your bottom line.