Newswise — Citing the company’s success in nurturing an innovative culture of health and safety for its workers, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) has awarded Baptist Health South Florida its Corporate Health Achievement Award (CHAA). ACOEM made the announcement this week as a part of its observation of national Workplace Wellness Week.
The CHAA recognizes quality occupational and environmental health programs, identifies model programs and outstanding practices with measurable results and encourages organizational self-assessment and continuous improvement. The Award is co-sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline.
“With passage of health reform legislation, it is more important than ever for employers to ensure their employees are healthy and productive. ACOEM is redoubling its efforts at making sure the employer community is aware of innovations that can help in this effort,” said ACOEM President Pamela Hymel, MD. “The CHAA program is a great way to share with them the best ideas about improving employee health in the nation.”
Baptist Health is the largest faith-based, not-for-profit health care organization in south Florida, comprised of six acute care hospitals, outpatient diagnostic and urgent care facilities, as well as surgical facilities and home health care services. More than 2,000 private practice physicians are affiliated with the organization, which has been named several times to both Fortune and Working Mother magazines’ “100 Best Companies to Work For” lists.
In choosing Baptist Health as this year’s CHAA recipient, ACOEM singled out two health-related programs for employees, in particular The Triumph Smoking Program, which has drastically cut the number of Baptist Health employees who smoke, and its comprehensive efforts to provide assistance to employees who may be experiencing domestic violence.
The organization’s Domestic Violence Support Network for Employees includes a task force of social workers, chaplains, nurses, doctors, and other staff who have been specially trained to identify evidence of domestic violence and help guide employees to assistance.
Baptist Health also incorporates a variety of wellness incentive initiatives for employees that have demonstrated a positive return on investment in terms of costs versus productivity.
“In addition to its general approach to employee health and safety, which is quite progressive, Baptist Health has wisely targeted for response specific health issues impacting its employees,” Dr. Hymel said. “This puts it at the forefront of companies that are recognizing that addressing specific health issues within an employee population can improve organizational performance.”
The Corporate Health Achievement Award was established in 1997 as way of encouraging healthier and safer work environments. The ACOEM award program is considered the most rigorous and comprehensive of its kind, requiring extensive documentation from companies of their programs and practices and an on-site visit by a team of ACOEM evaluators.
Recipients of the annual award are judged on the strength of their health and safety programs for individual employees, their programs to protect the environment, their leadership and management, and for their efforts to create an overall work culture that stresses healthy lifestyles and safety consciousness. Only organizations with the most exemplary health and safety practices are considered for the award.
Companies begin the process by filling out a health and safety self assessment, available at www.CHAA.org. Results of the assessment help companies determine how their programs compare to ACOEM health and safety standards and national best practices.
Applicants in the competition receive detailed feedback from ACOEM on their programs regardless of whether they receive an award, which Dr. Hymel says is helping raise awareness of best practices and, in the long run, improve standards for employee health and safety. “Safer, healthier workplaces mean increased productivity, more job satisfaction, less harmful environmental impact and enhanced community relationships,” she said.
To learn more about the Corporate Health Achievement Award, call ACOEM at 847-818-1800, or visit www.CHAA.org.
About ACOEMThe American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) represents more than 4,000 physicians specializing in occupational and environmental medicine. Founded in 1916, ACOEM is the nation’s largest medical society dedicated to promoting the health of workers through preventive medicine, clinical care, disability management, research, and education. For more information, visit www.acoem.org.
About GSKOne of the world’s leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies, GlaxoSmithKline is committed to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer.
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