From back to front: During the “Highway to Health” fair, Missy Rundio, Director of Recreation and Volunteers, assists Bernadette Perna, Director of Nursing on proper use of the Wii Fit exercises. Missy maneuvered Bernadette to help her achieve the best score possible! The current debate about the Health care crisis in the United States and the possibility of a new government initiated health care plan has divided the country in terms of support for this type of government run plan. According to an article in a past issue of Business Week, developing a healthy work force is essential for the well being of the country. According to www.cnn.com, in the United States, total health care spending was $2.4 trillion in 2007 — or $7,900 per person – according to an analysis published in the journal Health Affairs. The United States spends 52 percent more per person than the next most costly nation, Norway, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. President Obama has publicly stated he would like to see incentives for people to use preventive services and wellness plans. As part of the Republicans’ counter plan to improve the health care status of the country, they are advocating employers to reward employees for improved health. Even before health care reform became such a hot topic, Seashore Gardens Living Center was already concerned about the health and well being of their employees.

From left to right: Lynnette Pettus takes her turn on the slot machine for a chance to win one of many gifts that were given that day while Elaine Miller waits for her chance to spin for a prize. During the summer months, Seashore Gardens Living Center established a Wellness Committee comprised of management and employees in order to increase the overall health of staff members. Atlanticare partnered with Seashore Gardens Living Center and brought the Atlanticare Community Healthmobile to the Living Center on two various occasions – including in the middle of the night to give the 11 p.m. – 7 a.m. employees an opportunity to participate. Atlanticare’s Healthmobile is fully equipped to provide on location health screenings. Interested employees were able to take advantage of these health screenings, which included cholesterol, blood glucose, weight and an overall health evaluation and follow up plan. Individual employee test results remained confidential; however, Atlanticare provided the Wellness Committee the overall health statistics of the participants, including the top three health risks of the overall employee population.

After the Wellness Committee reviewed the results it reinforced the importance to begin an employee Wellness Program. To kick-off the wellness program, the committee hosted a “Highway to Health” fair.

Employees were encouraged to visit the various booths, participate in complimentary health screenings, receive Wii Fit lessons and sign up for a “Walking Towards Wellness” walking program. Employees who signed up for the walking program were given a pedometer and a walking log book to track the miles they walked outside of their normal activity. In addition, a conversion chart was provided for those who didn’t enjoy walking but could convert their time spent participating in other activities such as bike riding, gardening and house cleaning into the equivalent of walking one mile. “The goal of the program was to get employees moving more outside of work, which will increase strength, lower cholesterol, promote weight loss and improve the overall well-being of our staff” states Janice Cambron, Seashore Gardens Living Center Assistant Executive Director.

In order to make the “Walking Towards Wellness” program more interesting and successful, every other week participants turn in their miles to the Human Resources department, who totaled the group miles. The goal of the six-week walking program was for the group to accumulate enough miles to walk to Las Vegas, NV. The staff dining room had a large map of the United States and was updated every other week showing how far the group had walked to date. Each week when employees turned in their miles, they received a special incentive gift to keep everyone motivated to continue with the program.

The employee walking group made it to Las Vegas early! To celebrate, a special luncheon was held for those who participated in the program. The theatre of Seashore Gardens Living Center was decorated with a Las Vegas theme and walkers were treated to a delicious healthy lunch, special games and prizes. Although the walking program is officially over, we are encouraged to see many employees continue to walk after their lunch or during their breaks to stay fit. In addition, to continue to promote employee wellness, in the coming months, AtlantiCare will be providing a series of “Lunch and Learn” sessions for employees and the AtlantiCare van is scheduled to be on site for health screenings.

For more information on the how Seashore Gardens Living Center began their employee Wellness Program or if you would like more additional information, please feel free to call 609- 404-4848 or email office@seashore gardens.org.