Corporate wellness has grown into a $2 billion industry in that timeframe and has been incorporated into primary care medicine, corporate benefits packages, and government health initiatives. It has also become a buzzword used by health plans and brokers to upsell services.
Unfortunately, recent research indicates that while 90 percent of U.S. companies offer some aspect of wellness programs, only half of them have tried to measure the program’s success. Even sadder is the news that fewer than 7 percent of the wellness programs offered are good enough to make a difference.
Most wellness programs have an effective shelf life of two years or less. This leaves companies frustrated over poor employee engagement, low support among company leadership, and few results. Many companies abandon these initiatives altogether or start over entirely.
Harvard economists and scientists have found that when employers utilize current, comprehensive wellness programs, medical costs fall by $3.27 and absenteeism is reduced by $2.73 for every dollar invested in these programs. Of course, you must have the right wellness strategies in place to achieve results like these.
Here are eight action steps to redefine your wellness program so that you too can achieve similar results
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