Examine How Your Environment Affects Employees' Behavior
Organizational-level changes to the hospital environment can have a positive influence on the health of employees. There are opportunities to address physical inactivity, poor nutrition and tobacco-use among employees through environmental changes. WorkHealthy AmericaSM has resources to help you make these sorts of changes.
Tobacco cessation
By increasing the availability of tobacco-free environments, hospitals can protect people from the dangers of secondhand smoke and support people in quitting tobacco. NC Prevention Partners’ 12-month timeline breaks down the policy development process into monthly steps for your team. You can also check out sample tobacco-free policies and examples of effective signage in the Tobacco-Free toolbox. Developing and maintaining a 100% tobacco-free worksite is one of five key steps to achieving the Gold Star for providing the highest standard of excellence for tobacco cessation programs offered to employees.
Healthy nutrition
By making healthy choices available, people are more likely to choose them. In order to create a healthy food environment, it’s important to begin by defining what it means for food to be healthy. NC Prevention Partners has rigorously reviewed the existing science and come up with Healthy Food Environment Nutrition Criteria for you to use when identifying healthy options. Then you can work with your food service staff and vendors to procure healthy food options and to ensure that healthy foods are available at all operating hours. The Nutrition Toolbox has guides to help you work with catering, expand vending options, and modify contracts to make sure people have the chance to choose a healthy option. Providing access to healthy foods is one of five principles required to obtain the Gold Apple award for providing a healthy food environment for employees.
Physical activity
Creating an environment conducive to physical activity includes several components, such as providing access to physical activity opportunities both during work hours and beyond work hours, encouraging active commuting options, and providing accommodations for employees with special needs. A recent Working Well webinar is available on demand to learn more about successful strategies for building an environment that supports physically active employees. Providing space or facilities for people to be active is one of four essential components necessary for hospitals to earn the Fit First Gold Medal award for establishing a culture of wellness where being active is the norm.
For more information on resources available to you through the WorkHealthy AmericaSM toolboxs, contact Lindsey Bickers Bock (919-969-7022, x234).
Note: This reoccurring series highlights resources available to Working Well hospitals in the WorkHealthy AmericaSM toolbox. Therefore, you may have to log in to your WorkHealthy AmericaSM account in order to access the tools that we have linked to within this article. If you need assistance logging in to your account, contact Lindsey Bickers Bock at NC Prevention Partners (919-969-7022, x234).
