Type of Proposal
Visual Presentation (Poster, Installation, Demonstration)
Faculty
Faculty of Nursing
Faculty Sponsor
Dr. Debbie Kane
Proposal
Rates of cancer and other chronic illnesses are on the rise in Windsor-Essex County. Since the risk factors that influence the occurrence of these can be prevented and/or minimized through lifestyle and behavioral modifications, efforts to reduce the high rates must be directed towards the lifestyle and health behaviors of the residents. The workplace has been identified as one of the most direct ways to influence health behaviors (Merrill, Adlana, Garrett & Ross, 2011). While positive health outcomes have been supported for employees in large and mid-size companies, less is known about the effectiveness of workplace wellness programs geared to small businesses (less than 100 employees). Therefore, the aim of this research is to facilitate the development, implementation and evaluation of a workplace wellness program in a small sized business in Windsor-Essex County. Following the recruitment of a small-size company in Essex County a needs assessment was completed to guide the Health & Safety Wellness Committee in the initial planning of their wellness program initiatives. The following topics were identified as priority health issues: mental health and stress management, nutrition and weight reduction/management, fitness and exercise, smoking cessation, and cancer screening. The Health and Safety Wellness Committee has developed a plan whereby each month a topic will be targeted. The first topic addressed was mental health and stress management and included activities such as 3-minute mindfulness meditation and posters highlighting the benefits of positive approaches to stress management. The wellness initiatives for the New Year are focused on promoting realistic, sustainable New Year’s resolutions; February will highlight heart health, and March will focus on raising awareness of cancer screening. The effectiveness of the initiatives on the employee’s health behaviors and overall health will be assessed through employee surveys and interviews.
Start Date
29-3-2016 1:00 PM
End Date
29-3-2016 2:20 PM
Lancer's Lair
1
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Workplace Wellness Program- Influencing Healthy Lifestyle and Behaviour
Rates of cancer and other chronic illnesses are on the rise in Windsor-Essex County. Since the risk factors that influence the occurrence of these can be prevented and/or minimized through lifestyle and behavioral modifications, efforts to reduce the high rates must be directed towards the lifestyle and health behaviors of the residents. The workplace has been identified as one of the most direct ways to influence health behaviors (Merrill, Adlana, Garrett & Ross, 2011). While positive health outcomes have been supported for employees in large and mid-size companies, less is known about the effectiveness of workplace wellness programs geared to small businesses (less than 100 employees). Therefore, the aim of this research is to facilitate the development, implementation and evaluation of a workplace wellness program in a small sized business in Windsor-Essex County. Following the recruitment of a small-size company in Essex County a needs assessment was completed to guide the Health & Safety Wellness Committee in the initial planning of their wellness program initiatives. The following topics were identified as priority health issues: mental health and stress management, nutrition and weight reduction/management, fitness and exercise, smoking cessation, and cancer screening. The Health and Safety Wellness Committee has developed a plan whereby each month a topic will be targeted. The first topic addressed was mental health and stress management and included activities such as 3-minute mindfulness meditation and posters highlighting the benefits of positive approaches to stress management. The wellness initiatives for the New Year are focused on promoting realistic, sustainable New Year’s resolutions; February will highlight heart health, and March will focus on raising awareness of cancer screening. The effectiveness of the initiatives on the employee’s health behaviors and overall health will be assessed through employee surveys and interviews.