Employee Wellness Plans : Health Screening

The backbone of wellness programming at the worksite is health screening. It is the first major activity a business ought to do when first starting a wellness program. Health screening is frequently used in conjunction with the administration of a Health Risk Appraisal (HRA).

The most effective way to screen is to utilize a health professional trained in wellness screening techniques and counseling to privately and individually assess participants. This wellness professional takes a brief health history and measures Blood Pressure and blood lipids. With computerized blood lipids desktop analyzers, results are obtained in about four minutes.

Immediate feedback, consultation, and educational materials are given. For those identified at-risk, follow-up appointments can be scheduled at this time. The whole process takes about twenty minutes per individual. The screening also provides an immediate opportunity to register participants in various health improvement programs based on their interests and identified health risks.

Health assessment can be done on an annual basis and used as a means of monitoring health risks within the worksite.

A health assessment program needs to offer multiple opportunities for participation. The service must be given for all the various shifts of a business. The assessment program must be conducted in highly visible areas so the process can be monitored.

Reluctant workers frequently like to be able to see what the program is about before they participate. When wellness screeners are not busy, they should perform outreach going to areas where workers gather and attempt to recruit workers.

When well-planned and promoted, health screening can attract participation rates of 60% to 100%. These high participation rates have a positive influence on management producing support for further programming.