“Corporate” in the context of this article refers to corporate bodies or companies as well as “a body of people” as the Latin word corpus is translated. So it could mean a group of traders coming together, group of people living in the same neighbourhood etc.
Escalating health care costs continue to remain an issue of great concern for many health professionals, employers, the middle income earner and insurance companies. The latest statistics establish that 80% of illnesses and disease in Canada and the United States (data for Ghana not yet available but will be comparable) are preventable.
For many companies (and even individual incomes), medical costs can consume half (50%) of corporate profits – or more, which is in sharp contrast to a consumption of 7% of profits in the 1980s.Some employers look to cost sharing, health insurance and cash based rebates or incentives for solace but these methods merely shift costs. Only corporate wellness programmes stand out as the long term answer for keeping employees well in the first place. Corporate wellness is health reform that works.
Studies show that employees who exercise as little as once a week will incur health care costs that are one-third to one-half lower than those who don’t. “NASA found that while the productivity of non-exercising office workers decreased 50% during the final 2 hours of the work day, exercisers worked at full efficiency all day. This amounts to 12.5% difference in productivity between the two groups”. Can you imagine the cumulative effect in 5 years or more?
A structured corporate wellness programme will ensure that people with life-style diseases will gain renewed health and some may end up reducing the number or doses of medications they currently take. Conditions such as back and neck pains as well as the common cold will also see a drop in incidence as employees learn and adopt healthy practices. Future costs will also be reduced since the improved life-styles will reduce the incidence of new cases of chronic diseases.
Many companies have noted that for every $1 invested in a corporate wellness programme the returns could average $3-$5 (I have not used Ghana cedis because I do not have authentic data/statistics yet). In certain instances the returns have been over $10 but such cases are rare.
The benefits of corporate wellness programmes include but are not limited to:
· A decrease in health care costs
· Increase in workplace morale, responsibility, company loyalty and productivity
· Reduced absenteeism and presenteeism (the employee presents himself for work but underperforms or does not perform at all)
· Reduced sick leave
· Reduced stress
Common illnesses that increase health care costs as well as increase the overall cost burden include:
· Life style diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity and high cholesterol
· Common cold
· Back pain and neck pain
· Complications of smoking and alcohol indulgence
DISEASE
MONTHLY COST OF MEDICATION (GHC)
High Blood Pressure
24.00
Diabetes
23.00
Back Pain
10.00
Common Cold
8.00
Study in a Health Care facility in Accra, Ghana
Note that the figures in the table do not include, cost of consultation, investigations and real human hours away from work. This study also uses relatively inexpensive drugs. Project these figures to include the use of branded medications, multiple disease states, cost of time off work etc and you will have a fair idea of the devastating effect of not having a wellness programme in place.
It is important that all such group wellness programmes incorporate family members of the employees. It is known that employees account for only 30% of health care cost and their family members are responsible for a whopping 70%. Targeting the employee is great but incorporating family members makes the story even better.
In general there are four pillars that make up an ideal group (or corporate) wellness programme but the important point is to start and develop it over time.
In Ghana and other developing countries prevention of diseases especially the lifestyle ones should be paramount. We have neither adequate technology nor human resources to manage the complications of such diseases. It also acts as a major strain on our scarce resources. Unfortunately very little effort is currently in place to educate and prevent life style diseases by adopting inexpensive “corporate” wellness programmes which could include;
· Exercising
· Availability of appropriate health information to raise awareness
· Antismoking campaigns
· Regular medical screening
· Dietary advice
Such wellness programmes also educate people on preventing communicable diseases including STIs, cholera, typhoid etc
Yes, I agree some small groups may not be able to afford certain aspects but you can “cut your coat according to your size” and hopefully the larger corporations will adopt some of these groups as their social responsibility.
Moms Health Club for instance started a wellness centre at Agbobloshie market to educate traders, assist them to exercise and occasionally organize screening programmes. I hope many other companies will join this quest to grow a healthier and wealthier Ghana.
I am certainly looking forward to Parliament starting a “corporate” wellness programme soon to set an example for all to follow. This should be followed closely by the ministers and their various ministries. I can picture a brand new wealthy Ghana where exercise or wellness “time” is required by law and people utilize it for that purpose and for nothing else.
My Recommendations:
· All corporate bodies and government agencies should start a wellness programme
· Keep fit clubs should be encouraged and assisted by corporate bodies to acquire appropriate health information and not only be restricted to organizing walks( walking is great though)
· If government/international agencies/companies can subsidize the management of malaria, HIV etc then it is about time we look at wellness programmes
· Just as there is a lunch break in school and work places, we need to create and enforce a “wellness period”
· We need to start young and make wellness a way of life – expand physical education sessions in schools
Source:
Dr Kojo Cobba Essel
Medical Doctor & Fitness Therapist
Moms’ Health Club.
Email: dressel@healthclubsgh.com
References:
1. Cost Benefit Analysis & Report 1979-2001. University of Michigan Health Management Research Center
2. Six Reasons Why Health Promotion Makes Sense, Welcoa, 2002
4. Cost of Diabetes Management to Cocoa Clinics, Ghana. Ernest Quaye et al
