Workplace Health

Workplace Health Rachel Faulkner Workplace Health Coordinator Health Promotion Service 01209 313419 rachel.faulkner@ciospct.cornwall.nhs.uk

Contents This presentation includes: • Importance of Workplace Health • Costs • Benefits • National Update • Real Workplace Health Issues • Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Healthy Workplace Award 5. Support and Useful Resources

Why is Workplace Health important? The workplace is a setting where many people spend the largest proportion of their time and therefore can play a key role in contributing to the health of their employees and in turn the health of their organisation! Individuals may spend up to 60% of their waking hours in their place of work

A health promoting workplace: • Provides an environment which protects health • Provides opportunities and support for the promotion of healthy lifestyles • Organises work to promote good health

‘What’s in it for you?’ • Opportunity to look after your health! • Save Money • Retain Staff • Less time taken off sick • Attract new staff • Improve Morale And much more……..

Benefits of a Healthier Workplace: • Increased productivity • Improved absenteeism and ability to return to work after illness • Enhanced reputation - Helping to attract and keep employees • Reduced workplace injuries • Improved work-ability among older employees • Creating a positive corporate image • Reduced industrial injuries • Improved morale and health of the workforce

Costs • In 2006 around 175 million working days were lost due to illness and it is estimated that the annual economic costs of sickness absence and worklessness is over £100 billion. (Working for a healthier tomorrow, DOH March 2008). • Annually the average sickness absence is 3.7% (8.4 days per employee) and the average cost of absence per employee is estimated at £659. (CIPD Employee Absence, July 2007). • Stress related conditions and musculoskeletal disorders are now the most common reported causes of sickness absence from work in the UK. • The cost of making reasonable adjustments to keep an employee who develops a health condition or disability will almost certainly be far lower than the cost of recruiting and training a new employee. • Alcohol misuse among employees in England costs up to £6.4 billion a year in lost productivity through increased absenteeism, unemployment and premature death (Creating a healthy workplace, Faculty of Public Health, 2006).

Key Facts • Physically Active Employees take 27% Fewer Days Sick Leave than Non-Active Employees. • If the Present Trend in Obesity Continues, by 2010 1 in 4 People Will Not Fit into A Standard Office Chair. • In the UK, 1 in 5 Accidents in the Workplace are Alcohol Related. • 1 in 5 People Report Feeling Extremely Stressed at Work. • 4 out of every 5 people develop back pain that lasts more than a day at some time during their life.

No one should leave work at the end of the day, less healthy than they were when they arrived…. Work should be health enhancing!

National Update Dame Carol Black Review & The Governments Response to Dame Carol Black's Review of the Health of Britain's Working Age Population. Improving Health and work: Changing Lives - November 2008. Key initiatives: • Electronic Fit Note • A National Education Programme for GPs • Health, Work & Wellbeing Coordinators • National Centre for Working-Age Health & Wellbeing • Business Health Check Tool-Kit • Occupational Help-Line for smaller businesses • A Challenge Fund www.workingforhealth.gov.uk/

Real workplace health issues • Coordinator • Senior management support and commitment • Engaging employees – meeting their needs • What works • Champions • Communication

Coordinator Key to success of the project • overall responsibility rests with them • engage with management and employees • develop ‘innovative ideas’ • communicate, communicate… • Motivate!

Management support ‘Buy in’ + support essential for success Coordinator needs to: • Find out their key drivers e.g. sickness absence, retention, CSR • Ensure clarity and understanding of what is required • BEST WAY - develop and maintain regular contact and provide project updates and results, esp successes

Management support Management need to: • be seen as supportive • demonstrate support and endorsement for project • encourage staff to participate How… • promote activities • participate in activities with staff • allow flexible working time • recognise success

Champions Getting the right champions is vital! • Nomination from managers • Invitation from coordinator Volunteers – • more interested • more successful

Recruiting Champions More than 1 champion helps share responsibilities and increase capacity • Include people from different departments • Include people at different grades/ ages • Find out their interests • Give them recognition • Give them the responsibility

Champions How can the champion help the coordinator • Run the project + support throughout • Communication (vital) • raising awareness • encouraging staff • feedback to coordinator and managers • Sustainability of the project

Engaging employees • Takes time, persistence and constant communication • Even more so with those ‘resistant to change’, ‘cynical towards project’ and with ‘hard to reach individuals and groups’

Engaging employees Employee needs • Needs assessment/ survey • Champion and employee ‘working groups’ to bring forward ideas and needs • Formal and informal face-to-face contact with employees • Attending team/ department meetings

Engaging employees Encourage participation • Workplace champions – help to communicate, encourage peers and gain feedback from employees • Fun, innovative and social activities • Work with employees who show an early interest – get the project started, create early success – communicate success as widely as possible • Visible management support – management participation with employees, being flexible allowing staff to participate, recognition

Engaging employees What works well? Team based challenges and competitions • Provides support and encouragement from colleagues • ‘Friendly rivalry’ and competition helps to motivate employees • Can participate during the working day • Incentives • E.g. Pedometer challenge, team weight loss competitions “The pedometer Challenge has been a fun way of interacting with work colleagues both male and female as well as keeping your own personal fitness level up.”

Engaging employees What works well? One-off/ taster events • Cheap • Provide variety - appeal to wide range of employees • Time requirement low • Work well - in work time, on-site, offered free • Good to gauge interest for future activities • Lunchtime classes e.g. pilates, boxercise • Dance classes – ballroom, salsa, belly dancing • Tasters - rock climbing, surfing, golf, archery • Combining healthy activity with social events – ‘inflatable human football’, ‘rounders tournament’

Communication • Constant communication, promotion and reinforcement needed • Coordinator, management, champions and employees • Helps to encourage support, commitment and participation

Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Healthy Workplace Award

Cornwall & Isles Of Silly‘Healthy Workplace Award’ The Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Award is a county standard of good practice and quality mark of health and wellbeing in the workplace. It has been produced following research in to effective and successful workplace health awards in Wales, Scotland and Plymouth. There are three levels of the award – Bronze, Silver and Gold and 10 sets of criteria.

Cornwall & Isles Of Silly‘Healthy Workplace Award’ • Creating a Safe & Healthy Workplace • Health & Safety • Recruitment, Retention & Rehabilitation • Mental Wellbeing & Minimizing Stress • Back Pain & Prevention • Stop Smoking • Alcohol & Substance Misuse • Physical Activity including Active Travel • Healthier Eating including Healthy Weight • Choosing Well

Cornwall & Isles Of Silly‘Healthy Workplace Award’ The aim of the award is to act as a toolkit to encourage employers to think about ways to improve the health and wellbeing of their employees. The toolkit provides steps to achieve and improve in a wide range of health areas mentioned in the ten criteria. The process enables focus on the current good practices in place within an organisation and assists in recognising priorities and providing solutions to addressing any highlighted issues specific to the company and the working population.

Support Available from HPS Health Promotion Service can offer: • Support in working towards the ‘Healthy Workplace Award’ • Free Smoking Cessation Support in the workplace setting • Shape Up – Weight Management Courses • Training • Stress in the Workplace • Alcohol in the Workplace • Resource Library - Free Information and resources • And more, please contact Rachel Faulkner for further information! www.healthpromcornwall.org

Useful Resources • Health Promotion Training Booklet • Stress Tool-Kit • Sod It & Sod It All Books • Shift – Life in the Office DVD • Men at Work – Haynes Manual • NICE Guidance • Promoting physical activity in the workplace • Workplace interventions to promote smoking cessation • Management of long term sickness and incapacity for work • Promoting mental wellbeing at work • www.healthpromcornwall.org • Much more……

Workplace Health Resources – ‘A Healthy Business ‘needs’ a Health Workforce’ • The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has a series of resources for employers interested in workplace health programmes. • The resources cover physical activity, healthy eating and mental wellbeing and include a range of ideas, challenges and signposts, as well as an employee booklet, great giveaway items and fun packaging. • To order call: 0870 600 6566 Email: orderline@bhf.org.uk Visit: bhf.org.uk/thinkfit • The BHF would welcome a suggested donation of £25 per pack.

Think fit! Physical activity G283 &G283h08 Think fit! - A guide to developing a workplace activity programme (2005) Think fit! Be active! A ‘how to do it’ guide to workplace physical activity interventions (2008)

Think fit! Healthy eatingG399 Think fit! - Eat well! A guide to developing a workplace healthy eating programme (2008)

Think fit! Mental wellbeingG400 Think fit! - Think well! A guide to developing a workplace mental wellbeing programme (2008)

www.bhf.org.uk/HealthAtWork/ Please Check Out the website above • Top Tips • Sign Up to the E Newsletter • Check out examples of case studies

Thank youAny Questions?Workplace Health Rachel Faulkner Workplace Health Coordinator Health Promotion Service 01209 313419 rachel.faulkner@ciospct.cornwall.nhs.uk

Workplace Health