| Strategies to improve employee and population health |  |
| Wellness Programs & Trends |  |  |
|
- Mo. employers say clinics control health care spending
Family-owned Sunnen Corp., based in the St. Louis area, has an on-site wellness clinic for its 465 employees, along with wellness programs that have helped keep health care costs at about the same level since 2009. An on-site clinic at Centene Corp. in Clayton, Mo., led to about $313,000 in avoided costs in 2012 for physician and emergency department visits and $532,000 in savings from avoided absences and increased productivity. St. Louis Post-Dispatch
(3/18)     
- Companies make wellness part of corporate culture
Progressive Insurance, Twitter and Canadian telephone company TELUS have made wellness activities part of the company culture by offering onsite exercise and diet programs, smoking-cessation and mental health programs, and added perks such as massages and acupuncture. TELUS wellness director Janet Crowe says small businesses should not be intimidated by what larger employers are doing and can begin their own programs by simply asking workers what types of activities would help them. Entrepreneur online
(3/15)
| Fitness | | |
|
- Home-based exercise program boosts health in seniors
Adults age 65 and older who participated in an at-home, DVD-based exercise program showed better health outcomes at six months compared with those in the control group, researchers reported in the Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences. RedOrbit
(3/12), Examiner.com
(3/12)
| Health News & Research | | |
|
- FDA: Parents should know what's in cold, allergy meds
Too much antihistamine, an active ingredient found in children's cold and allergy drugs, can lead to sedation, agitation or even breathing difficulties, FDA officials warned. Other active ingredients in allergy and cold drugs, such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen, can result in severe health issues for children if taken in excess. DoctorsLounge.com/HealthDay News
(3/17)
- Graveyard shift linked to higher ovarian cancer risk in study
Women who worked night shifts were 49% and 24% more likely than day-shift workers to develop early-stage ovarian cancer and advanced ovarian cancer, respectively, according to a study in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Higher risk for the cancer was seen among women aged 50 and older if they had a history of working night shifts, researchers said. DailyRx.com
(3/14)
- Study links coffee, green tea consumption to lower stroke risk
People who drank at least one cup of coffee or at least two cups of green tea per day had a 32% lower risk of intracerebral hemorrhage compared with people who rarely drank either beverage, according to a study published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association. Researchers looked at the drinking habits of more than 83,000 adults in Japan and found that those who drank at least one cup of coffee or two to three cups of green tea daily were 20% and 14% less likely, respectively, to suffer a stroke. United Press International
(3/18), PhysiciansBriefing.com/HealthDay News
(3/15)
| Schools & Community | | |
|
- Wash. state program delivers locally grown food to schools
The Arlington School District in Washington state recently was named the Western Washington Fresh Food in Schools Champion by the Washington Sustainable Food & Farming Network -- in part for its efforts to serve locally produced food in school cafeterias. Officials say the program is a win-win for schools and for farms statewide, which provided more than $300,000 in fruits and vegetables to participating schools. HeraldNet (Everett, Wash.)
(3/15)
- Charlotte, N.C., volunteers build vegetable gardens at school
Hidden Valley Elementary School staff and families volunteered to build raised-bed vegetable gardens as part of the "Healthy Children, Healthy Families" program in Charlotte, N.C. The Friendship Garden is one of 10 gardens sponsored by Novant Health Foundations, and some of the harvested produce will go to the Friendship Trays' Meals on Wheels program. The Charlotte Observer (N.C.)
(3/16)
| Wellness Industry Developments | | |
|
| AHIP News | | |
|
-
Where technology, genomics and consumerism can take health care
Named the 2012 most influential physician executive in health care by Modern Healthcare, Eric Topol, MD, is known for taking a fresh approach to patient care and is a leader helping to shape the future of our health care system. At Institute 2013, June 12 to 14 in Las Vegas, Dr. Topol will share why personalizing medicine through the use of data analytics and genome technology is a game-changing approach that will solve many of the challenges facing our health care system. Register now.
-
Privacy regulation: significant changes ahead. Learn more.
HHS issued a “Mega Reg” that addresses numerous aspects of patient privacy. The new rule will strengthen the privacy and security protection for individuals' health information in an ever-expanding digital age. Join us from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET on March 21 for a webinar when legal experts will dissect the changes, provide analysis and present experienced commentary. Get details.
| SmartQuote | | |
|
 | What men value in this world is not rights but privileges."
--H.L. Mencken,
American journalist and essayist
|
| |
| |
| AHIP Solutions Team |
Managing Editor, Online Publishing:
Yvonne Chanatry
 |
|
| |
| |
| | Recent AHIP Wellness SmartBrief Issues:
- Friday, March 15, 2013
- Thursday, March 14, 2013
- Wednesday, March 13, 2013
- Tuesday, March 12, 2013
- Monday, March 11, 2013
| | | Lead Editor: Kathryn Doherty
Mailing Address:
SmartBrief, Inc.®, 555 11th ST NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20004 | |
| |
|
© 1999-2013 SmartBrief, Inc.® Legal Information
Product announcements appearing in SmartBrief are paid advertisements and do
not reflect actual AHIP endorsements. The news reported in SmartBrief does not
necessarily reflect the official position of AHIP.
|
|
