Creating a Global Culture of Health: Designing Data-Driven Multinational Wellness Programs

摘要

Description: In the United States, abundant guidance and experience are available to help companies design, implement, and evaluate employee wellness programs. Multinational corporations extending these programs to their global employees must work carefully to develop culturally relevant and effective programs given a context of different health care systems, health needs, and available resources. Objectives and Scope of Study: To develop the infrastructure and program components for a global wellness program that actively and consistently promote and reinforce healthy and safe behaviors at all worksites. To provide all employees with access to high-quality health information. To integrate wellness programs with existing safety, public health, and environment initiatives. Application: We selected four pilot countries in Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific, and South America. We used an online questionnaire with follow-up conference calls to collect information from in-country medical and human resource managers about past and present employee health, public health, safety and environment worksite initiatives. They also described typical management-to-employee communication methods. Results, Observations, and Conclusions: Online responses from in-country medical department and human resource managers enabled the development of a global strategy with core components and optional worksite programs appropriate for a range of country contexts. High priority health topics and needs for tools varied. Weight management programs were widely endorsed, but needs for tobacco use, chronic disease management, and onsite care varied. Follow-up conference calls with local stakeholders filled data gaps and provided important complementary information including information about employees’ access to technology to help design appropriate program communications. A program with pillars built upon core components allows for global consistency, while retaining flexibility for local businesses to implement programs that consider site-specific health priorities, infrastructure, and access to resources. Significance of Subject Matter: Companies planning to implement effective global wellness programs can learn from this process. Use of an online wellness survey with a qualitative follow-up component, facilitates the collection of contextually relevant information that contributes to the creation of a standard global program that can also address worksite needs across multiple countries.