Building health from inside out

MAKING HEALTH A PRIORITY: South County Health looks to improve the health and wellbeing of employees as well as patients, offering, among other things, healthy food choices at the on-site dining room, including pharmacist Deborah Cote's choice, a 310-calorie Southwestern grilled chicken salad. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO
MAKING HEALTH A PRIORITY: South County Health looks to improve the health and wellbeing of employees as well as patients, offering, among other things, healthy food choices at the on-site dining room, including pharmacist Deborah Cote's choice, a 310-calorie Southwestern grilled chicken salad. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Medical centers are intrinsically committed to bettering the health, well-being and quality of life of their patients, but it’s not always the case that they strive for those outcomes with their employees.

For South County Health – formerly South County Hospital Healthcare System – this is a crucial mission. Through various initiatives, the longstanding South Kingstown medical institution is dedicated to enhancing and improving the overall health and wellness of its workforce.

“Our commitment to our staff is as strong as our commitment to our community,” said Maggie Thomas, South County’s assistant vice president and chief human relations officer. “We want to encourage and support staff in maintaining their well-being.”

Formally established in 2010, South County’s Well Beyond wellness program encourages and incentivizes its roughly 1,200 employees to take charge of various aspects of their overall health. Core requirements for staff and their spouses/partners who are enrolled in the organization’s health plan include participation in an annual health assessment, and a “know-your-numbers” biometric screening.

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After those thresholds are met, employees can participate in a whole host of points-based programs that translate into real-world dollars – up to $300 annually – that can be deposited into their health reimbursement accounts or cashed out as taxable bonuses. As an added incentive and reward, every year South County highlights workplace wellness champions who have exhibited exemplary results and/or commitment.

Recent program topics have targeted physical activity (exercise, flexibility, recreation and strength training); nutrition (healthy diets, nutritional and caloric contents and needs, and proper portions); preventative care (cholesterol, healthy blood pressure and body mass index); resilience (stress management, work/life balance and sleep habits); and financial wellness (career development, overall well-being, and professional excellence and growth).

Beyond these initiatives, staff have 24/7 access to an on-site gym. Likewise, on-site wellness coaching was introduced earlier this year. Available two days a month at designated locations, staff and their spouses/partners can schedule appointments to discuss setting health priorities, develop personal plans and solicit advice.

“It’s been very well-received, with tons of positive feedback,” Thomas said of the coaching program. She stressed the importance of an outside party who can help people overcome barriers and approach their goals from different angles. “Sometimes folks have difficulty getting started … or they fall out of their health routines,” she said. Highly popular, coaching sessions have been at “maximum capacity” since they were first offered a few months ago.

A good portion of attendance is the result of financial concerns. To help mitigate such worries, the company offers access to health-to-wealth calculators as well as on-site monthly consultations with retirement advisers. “It allows staff to determine how they are impacted financially based on their behaviors,” said Thomas. “It educates them on the benefits of saving for retirement, identifies the resources and tools available to them, and enables them to save.”

Voluntary plans are at 35 percent participation rate, according to Thomas, “which has been doubling from years past.” Participation in health-risk assessments has likewise increased from 1,020 in 2013 to 1,313 in 2014, with improved outcomes achieved.

Ultimately, all of these marked improvements could result in significant cost savings. According to the Archives of Internal Medicine, employees with hypertension cost their employers an average of $392 in medical costs per year. According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, those with heart disease cost their employers an estimated $2,715 a year. And according to the American Diabetes Association, those with diabetes cost their employers an average of $13,243 per year.

Wellness programs do “bend the cost curve in terms of overall health,” said Thomas, but she stressed that “the main focus is really encouraging good health.”

Acknowledging that health care organizations can sometimes be characterized as not practicing their own medicine when it comes to self-care, Thomas stressed that, “we have made this very much part of our culture. It’s who we are.” n

A Healthy Though:

‘We want to make sure that our programs encourage and reinforce personal growth.’

Maggie Thomas, chief human relations officer, South County Health

Number of Employees: 1,172

CEO (or equivalent): Louis R. Giancola, president and CEO

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