The first, Australia’s Health 2014 (or Australia’s Health 2014 — in brief), published by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) and summarized and interpreted in “Good Health, Bad Health Habits, At a Cost,” points to health improvements in which all Australians can take pride:
Smoking rates still falling, fewer people drinking
Cancer death rates falling, survival improving
Fewer heart attacks and strokes
Asthma and COPD death rates improving
Living longer
Generally feeling well
On the other hand, the report points to these and other areas that need more work:
Mental disorders
Too much weight, not enough exercise
Diabetes on the rise
Eating well?
Some problems with alcohol and drugs
Dementia numbers rising
The report indicates that Australia’s biggest health care problem is chronic disease and along with that, the increasing cost of the health care system in Australia. Chronic disease accounted for 90% of all Australian deaths in 2011, many preventable with lifestyle changes. At the same time, health care costs were 26% of the national budget in 2011-12, 6% higher than before the Global Financial Crisis. More of the burden of health care is falling on individuals and on communities.
The second report, Workshop Paper – Prevention and Wellness (Author: Dr. John Lang B.Ed., M.H.K., Ph.D.) uses data from the AIHW, among other sources, to pick up where the first report leaves off, proposing specific solutions.
This second report points out that Australian government allocates and spends 70% of the annual Federal budget, or $70 billion, annually on chronic conditions. 70% of that amount, $50 billion, is for preventable conditions, disease caused by lifestyle behaviors. Yet the government allocates and spends just 1.8% of the Federal budget on preventive care. As the author, Dr. John Lang, exclaims, “So 1.8% of the budget is allocated to address a problem which costs 50% of the budget.”
Dr. Lang’s proposal, based on the premise that prevention and early identification of risk factors for chronic disease, as well as intervention options, must happen in the corporate realm since “the health system currently has no mechanism to deliver preventative services on the scale required to impact significantly on the cost of chronic diseases.” By extending preventive services to the work site, however, these services can reach “10 million working Australians who average 4 lifestyle related risk factors per person.”
Both reports are highly readable and contribute in important ways to any discussion of Australian health. They establish the need for attention to preventable chronic health conditions and the enormous impact on the public budget of health care for these conditions. The second report adds statistics and a workable approach to the issue through the workplace.
But what is the benefit to an employer of introducing employee wellness? In other words, why should you, as an employer, consider introducing an employee wellness program, including wellness coaching, to your workplace?
Lang proposes several measurements companies can use to evaluate the success of wellness programs, but three in particular promise benefits to an employer:
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- Changes in attitude toward management
- Behavior changes and health improvement
- Cost-benefit analysis (absenteeism and higher healthcare costs vs. healthier, more productive employees)
Is there really a hard return on employee wellness programs? A study reported in the December 2010 issue of the Harvard Business Review says, “yes.” Johnson and Johnson calculated a return of $2.71 for every dollar spent.
A critical part of an employee wellness program is wellness coaching. Wellness coaching addresses the specific needs of the individual. It includes pre-program assessments, short and long-term goal-setting, interventions appropriate to the needs of the individual, an accountability partner, ongoing monitoring and more. Wellness coaching keeps employees on track, protecting your investment.
Contact us today to discuss how corporate health and wellness coaching can benefit your business by helping your employees.