Task

The World Health Organisation recommended a number of elements for effective personal health interventions in the workplace (Burton, 2010). Outline how each of the six recommended elements in your course material could be built into an intervention to address obesity through the workplace setting (800) words.

Review

Workplace health initiatives: evidence of effectiveness

Part I: Introduction

The global NCD crisis

Workplace health initiatives around the world are growing in number and scope, as employers come to realize that addressing employee health and wellness is linked to increased productivity and reduced absenteeism, and that the return on this strategic investment and overall health cost savings are high.

The dramatic global increase in chronic, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in recent years is also playing a part in the spread of these initiatives. Between them, the four major NCDs – cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke), cancer, type 2 diabetes, and chronic lung disease – account for over 60% of deaths in the world, double the number of deaths from all infectious diseases (including HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria), maternal and perinatal conditions, and nutritional deficiencies combined.