Suchergebnisse

Purpose. Examine the relationship between stress level and quality of life at a worksite wellness center. Design. A survey completed when joining the wellness center. Setting. Employee wellness center. Subjects. Survey that inquired about stress, health behaviors, and quality of life of more than 13,000 employees joining a wellness center. Measures. A series of questions about current health status and health behaviors. Analysis. Two-sample t-tests assuming unequal variances. Results. A total of 2147 of these employees reported having high stress levels. Employees with high stress levels had statistically significant lower quality of life, more fatigue, and poorer health compared with employees with low stress levels. In terms of their ability and motivation to participate in wellness programs, the high-stress employees were also less active and had less healthy nutritional habits, less support, and less confidence in their ability to be active. They also reported having more health problems, including high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol, and overweight. Conclusions. It appears that employees with high stress levels—those who might most benefit from participation in wellness programs—may experience the greatest difficulty participating actively in wellness programs because of their lack of support, low confidence, and numerous health problems. Perhaps offering tailored stress reduction programs for these employees would be beneficial.

Purpose. There is limited documentation regarding the potential quality of life (QOL) benefits associated with use of a worksite wellness center. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the relationship between potential QOL change and use of a worksite wellness center during a 12-month period. Design. Analysis of an annual QOL wellness center member survey and wellness center use during a 12-month time period. Setting. A worksite wellness center. Participants. A total of 1151 employee wellness center members, average age of 39.5 years, 69.7% female, and 43.5% reported being overweight. Intervention. Members of the worksite wellness center have access to a range of fitness options, including exercise classes, water aerobics, an indoor track, strength training, and aerobic conditioning equipment. Additionally, nutritional classes are offered, and there is a wellness café. For resiliency, members can participate in wellness coaching or a stress-reduction group program. Method. Participants completed a baseline QOL survey and a second QOL survey 1 year later. An electronic entry system tracked use of the wellness center. Results. Participants were divided into four wellness center use quartiles: low users (less than once every 2 weeks), below-average users, above-average users, and high users (two to three visits per week). High users reported experiencing improvements in their physical QOL (p < .0001) compared with the low users. Additionally, low users experienced a greater decline in their mental QOL (p = .05) compared with high users. Conclusion. In a large sample of employees, use of a wellness center during a 12-month period was associated with benefits for physical QOL. QOL is an important domain of wellness; therefore, in addition to measuring physiologic changes, examining potential QOL changes may be another important outcome measure for wellness centers.

Purpose: This project examined potential changes in health behaviors following wellness coaching. Design: In a single cohort study design, wellness coaching participants were recruited in 2011, data were collected through July 2012, and were analyzed through December 2013. Items in the study questionnaire used requested information about 11 health behaviors, self-efficacy for eating, and goalsetting skills. Setting: Worksite wellness center. Participants: One-hundred employee wellness center members with an average age of 42 years; 90% were female and most were overweight or obese. Intervention: Twelve weeks of in-person, one-on-one wellness coaching. Method: Participants completed study questionnaires when they started wellness coaching (baseline), after 12 weeks of wellness coaching, and at a 3-month follow-up. Results: From baseline to week 12, these 100 wellness coaching participants improved their self-reported health behaviors (11 domains, 0- to 10-point scale) from an average of 6.4 to 7.7 ( p < .001), eating selfefficacy from an average of 112 to 142 (on a 0- to 180-point scale; p < .001), and goal-setting skills from an average of 49 to 55 (on a 16- to 80-point scale; p < .001). Conclusion: These results suggest that participants improved their current health behaviors and learned skills for continued healthy living. Future studies that use randomized controlled trials are needed to establish causality for wellness coaching.