FitSense Australia Wellness Forum

I would recommend an annual health and fitness appraisal/assessment to be conducted on a voluntary basis. This is regular enough to keep track of changes while also being cost effective. These annual results can then be used to assist both the individual participant and the organisation set goals and strategies to achieve these goals.

When it comes to the appraisal structure, there are many different ways of approaching this. While shorter appraisals (~20min) are beneficial, they are definitely not comprehensive. Additionally, they do not allow enough time to discuss the results with the participant and set individual goals and action plans.

Our preference is a 45 minute appraisal as allows adequate time to complete a detailed assessment of health and fitness, as well as working with the participant to set an action plan. This duration makes the appraisal beneficial for both the participant and organisation, as well as being cost effective.

Thanks for the good questions Adam and hope this helps.

Ben

How often would you want to do a health audit? Is this the sort of thing you would do every 6 months or every year of the program? Also, what would be the best duration for one of these audits or assessments, how much can be done in 20min? What do you find as most worthwhild?

Adam, I agree that it is important to include areas where participants are likely to see results. Not only will progress like this help motivation, but any area of health and fitness that you can see changes in quite quickly are likely to be high risk areas and thus needing attention.

However, when determining the focus of a program you also want to ensure you cover those areas that are identified as high risk areas within your organisation. This is the benefit of undertaking a health audit at the beginning of your program. If participants complete a health and fitness appraisal/assessment, it will not only allow them to set individual goals, but also allow for group data to be looked at across the organisation and within specific work divisions.

From this group report, focus areas can be identified, and the education (lifestyle change) phase of the program can focus on these areas.

My recommendation is that your program is quite holistic. Varying aspects of an individual's health are not isolated, and therefore the holistic approach generally leads to the best results.

Hope this helps.

Ben

Cheers for that Ben. Would it be correct then to focus a program just around the areas you are most likely to see results? Such as a weight loss program to get people out walking and exercising, or should the program cover more areas? If weight comes down then it improves other areas too right?

Adam,

This isn?t an easy question to answer. Every individual is different and responds to change differently. Therefore there is no set timeframe for change.

From an organisational perspective it is realistic to expect improvements in areas such as weight loss, smoking and motivation after 1 year however to expect substantial changes in individuals suffering from significantly deteriorated health is not realistic.

As a general rule, the goal should be for your corporate wellness program to be run over at least 4-5 years with long term goals in mind.

The first year of a program is often used to educate participants on the importance of health and making appropriate lifestyle changes. As the program continues into successive year?s participants are able to complete previous goals, re-assess, and set new goals, this continues to motivate employees and set them up for long term lifestyle changes.

Research suggests that the average Australian has 2.9 health risks (eg overweight, smokes, hypertension, etc). Australian research indicates that these health risks cost an employer around $3480 per employee per year. It is thought however that a well implemented wellness program can see these health risks reduce by 10% per year.

I hope this information helps to clear up your timeframe question and look forward to more questions in the future.

Regards,

Ben

I understand that research into corporate wellness programs show they can result in a lot of organisational improvements, however not much information is given on the time it is reasonable to see results. What would be a realistic timeframe to see sustained change in an organisation?