Dr Dawn Scott PH Consultant NHS North of Tyne Workplace health - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Dr Dawn Scott PH Consultant NHS North of Tyne

Workplace health Obesity and the obesogenic environment – what can you do to support your workforce?

Good Health is Good Business Considerations - Workplace Health

• Effects of Health on Work
• Effects of Work on Health

Effects of one’s Health on Work

• Preventing ill-health through health promotion in
• r through the workplace (primary prevention) in

relation to work related and non work related issues

• Managing chronic ill health / health conditions

whilst employed (secondary prevention)

• Preparing for retirement / succession planning

Healthy Workplace

The effects of Work on Health Diverse and varied depending on workplace – but underpinned by Health, Safety and welfare legislation Our working environment can have

• Effects on physical health
• Effects on emotional Health

Health & safety education & training and health promotion are key to ensuring a happy healthy and productive workforce

Shift patterns

• “Normal” hours of work are generally taken to

mean a working day with hours left for recreation and rest. Rest is a night time activity, work a daytime activity.

• Shift patterns can both enhance and hinder one’s
• pportunities to take regular exercise and/or eat

healthily

• Physical fitness appears to help workers cope with

shift work (advice on exercise, diet and sleep management)

Occup Environ Med 2001;58:68-72 doi:10.1136/oem.58.1.68

Strategy for health promotion in the workplace

• health education / promotion to raise

awareness of factors affecting health and well-being (Knowledge / informed choice)

• action programmes e.g. walking groups;

workplace weight management

• screening programmes to detect risk factors
• r early signs of disease (specific to certain

work places)

TOOL D7 What success looks like – changing behaviour

• More workplaces that promote healthy eating and

activity, with the public sector acting as an exemplar, both through the location and design of the buildings on the government estate and through staff engagement programmes

• Everyone able to access appropriate advice and

information on healthy weight

• Increasing numbers of overweight and obese

individuals able to access appropriate support and services

Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives: A toolkit for developing local strategies 2008

Health promotion in the work place

• Improves access to health information,

advice and guidance

• May / should improve access to health

promoting activities

• Improves the emotional health and well

being of employees

• Increases productivity (quality / quantity)

Obesity - Extent of the problem across North of Tyne

• Using the ‘Lighten the Load Ready Reckoner’

it is estimated that 141,161 working age adults (16-74 year olds) across North of Tyne are obese (BMI greater than 30kg/m2)

Based on Health Survey for England 2006

Area and Gender Breakdown

• Newcastle 23,954 males / 23,757 females
• North Tyneside 17,429 males / 18,049

females

• Northumberland 28,741 males / 29,228

females

Based on Health Survey for England 2006 – (16-74 year olds)

BMI prevalence in the workplace

• Job activity levels (strenuous, active and sedentary) have an impact on

musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) in employees – a high BMI (> 30) increases MSD especially lower body and low back pain disorders

• Older age and high BMI together are more likely to give rise to lower body MSD
• ‘Constructing better health study’ (Construction industry workers) – 16% of

workers obese - more likely if less skilled

• It is suggested that obesity increases problems of health, reduces the chances of

recovery and increases the risk of death (Christensen et al., 2009)

• BMI of >30 can restrict work for some professions (Divers)
• NHS organisations have had to make significant changes to workplace practice and

invest in high cost equipment to deal with the increasing number of bariatric patients admitted

• Chronic obesity was a particularly strong predictor of long absences in men

(Whitehall study, 2007) Findings from this well-characterized cohort suggest that the obesity epidemic in industrialised countries may result in significant increases in sickness absence.

Causal factors

Workplaces are excellent settings for tackling obesity

• Invite health trainers into you workplace

setting

• Encourage regular health checks (in or out of

work) – early intervention

• Olympic year – a once in a lifetime
• pportunity to incentivise your work force

Addressing causal factors in the workplace

• Increasing opportunities to improve access to and uptake of

physical activity

• Changing the physical working environment (encourage

stairs not lifts)

• Improving food availability at work e.g. healthy canteen

food / removal of vending machines

• Encouraging healthy modes of travel to and from work
• Offer workplace support especially where shift patterns

hinder regular attendance to non work support

• Provide information, advice and guidance about healthy

lifestyles and work based weight management programmes