Making Good Health a Competition

I recently received a $50 Target gift card in the mail. I received this gift card because I filled out a health questionnaire for my organization's health care plan. Getting $50 to spend at "Tarjay" was easier than having a birthday (because I wasn't a year older). The gift card was an incentive, one of many various organizations use in an attempt to raise the health-consciousness of their employees. 

This wasn't the first attempt by my organization to form a healthier workforce. In the past we had the "Take the Stairs" challenge where employees were encouraged to use the stairs rather than the elevator. When the challenge first began there was a communication push tied to a contest on how many flights total tallied up. Since that initial push, the most that has happened is doodling on the stairwell sign-in sheets. Then there was the challenge for who could walk the most steps in a span of time. Each participant was given a pedometer and teams were formed, mainly based on the floor your office was located on. None of these seemed to make an effective, lasting impact. Was there some value in these efforts - yes. They were low cost and did lead to re-focusing attention on employees' health.

Why did my organization take the time and effort to partner and promote these challenges? Health care costs. It's a fairly straight line from the aggregated health of your employees to the costs of health care premiums. Healthy people tend to use their health care benefits less often, tend to use less sick days, and are more productive. Apparently a healthier workforce also results in less presenteeism (don't worry, I had to look it up too). Presenteeism, according to the CDC is "the measurable extent to which health symptoms, conditions, and diseases adversely affect the work productivity of individuals who choose to remain at work".

According to statistics noted in "Pitting Employees Against Each Other...for Health" and appearing the Wall Street Journal, 60% of employers polled by consultants and the National Business Group on Health indicate their future health initiatives will include online games and other competitions between employee groups or locations.  After reading this, I began to question just how effective are these methods for bolstering the health of employees? To answer, I considered the challenge for walking the most steps. After participants received their pedometers it wasn't long until word spread that you could "tip the scales in your favor" by jiggling the pedometer (no walking needed). I'm afraid the message on health was lost on some employees. 

How do you ensure participants in health games are not cheating? You could require they use "tamper-proof" devices like digital pedometers or heart-rate monitors like those used with Humana's incentive program HumanaVitality. This may cause other issues, though, like backlash from employees who feel their privacy invaded. "The more you make it formal, the more burdensome it might feel", states health and welfare benefits leader Carolyn Plummer.  

I guess we will stick with our small, low cost efforts for now....