Wellness in the Workplace – Who has the professionalise?
When it comes to working wellness into your workforce, you want someone who knows the ins and outs of wellness, and who can counsel staff members and provide primary care – all within the context of the current regulatory and legal environment.
AAOHN’s survey reported that more than half of workers (61 percent) want to receive wellness information from a healthcare specialist, such as a consultant or an onsite occupational health nurse (OHN), compared to handouts or handouts (18 percent) or HR staff (15 percent).
OHNs can develop, implement and evaluate components of work site wellness programs like screening programs, exercise/fitness courses, stress management, smoking cessation, nutrition and weight control programs, as well as chronic condition management programs.
Plus, OHNs can help workers navigate through complicated health plans and may even serve as a triage point between workers and their personal healthcare providers.
Employees might refrain from seeing their healthcare provider when it means time away from work, inconvenient parking, waiting time in the office and co-pays.
In situations where employees are under treatment for chronic diseases like heart disease, onsite nurses can routinely monitor risk factors like blood pressure (BP) or cholesterol on a regular basis.
It’s often easier for an employee to ask an on-site nurse for information about signs or prescription medication than it’s to schedule a follow-up visit to an individual healthcare provider.
Benefits realized by companys include enhanced worker morale and retention, a recruitment advantage, increased productivity and lowered time away from work.
In corporations with a safety department, the OHN can evaluate and address work-related health issues, including participation in workstation examinations to correct potential ergonomic problems, and proactively addressing muscle strains by developing stretching programs and involving workers in leading stretches.