Prudential Programs Help Boost Productivity Levels

The Prudential Financial companies have received a "best practices" award by the Garden State Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) for instituting programs that are aimed at keeping employees healthy and available to work.

Chief Medical Officer K. Andrew Crighton says Prudential's goal in offering various benefits programs "is not to just make workers feel good, though that matters. Rather, it is to move participating employees into lower health risk categories." As a result, the doctor notes, workers are more productive on the job, otherwise lost time becomes "found" time, and health care costs decline.

Prudential's programs include a wide array of medical, fitness, employee assistance, wellness, and work/life options. Its wellness program includes: ergonomics training and evaluations; screening and interventions for hypertension, cholesterol, and diabetes; annual flu vaccinations; cancer awareness; stress and lifestyle management; education focused on women's health and men's health; and smoking cessation.

The company has begun to gather objective and quantitative data regarding health care cost savings that are attributable to its wellness programs.

Dr. Crighton says smaller companies can create programs similar to Prudential's by partnering with other organizations. For example, he said, an area health care provider could offer "lunch and learn" sessions on disease prevention and management, as well as blood pressure and cholesterol screening clinics; and a nearby hospital could provide mobile mammography exams. In addition, the doctor said smaller companies could band together to share wellness services and advice from specialists in occupational medicine.