Health promotion at the workplace

Abstract

Health promotion encompasses those activities undertaken to improve the quality of one's life, thereby moving the individual forward toward a state of wellness or optimal health. Occupational health nurses are in a prime position to impart knowledge and change attitudes and behaviors and thus are uniquely qualified to plan, develop, implement, and evaluate workplace health promotion programs. Employee health promotion programs are based on the theory that it costs less to educate workers about controllable lifestyle health risks than to pay for the cost of ill health. Comprehensive workplace health promotion programs should be targeted at three levels: awareness, lifestyle/behavior change, and supportive environments, if long-term success is to be achieved. Occupational health nurses may use the Model for Workplace Health Promotion to assist them in planning, developing, implementing, and evaluating programs that provide health and cost benefits for both employees and employers.