Arthritis affects 43 million Americans, costs $65 billion annually, and is the leading cause of disability in the United States. Over 7 million Americans are limited in their ability to participate in daily activities such as going to work, resulting in an estimated cost of $50 billion annually due to indirect costs from lost wages. Arthritis is second only to heart disease as a major cause of missed work. Persons age 45-64 incur the largest share of indirect costs. Projections indicate that by 2020, 60 million Americans will be affected by arthritis, 11.6 million with an arthritis-related disability. The National Arthritis Action Plan: A Public Health Strategy (NAAP) addresses the burden of arthritis and represents a combined effort of nearly 90 organizations with an interest in arthritis prevention and control. Spearheaded by the Arthritis Foundation, CDC and ASTHO, the Plan’s success rests on forging public-private partnerships and their ongoing collaboration. In the case of work site-based programs, the NAAP encourages identifying and involving businesses and employers as priority audiences for communication strategies and channels for message delivery. Initially met with the misperception of arthritis as an older person’s disease, workplace programs are key in reaching the pre-retirement age group for arthritis prevention messages and programs. This presentation will provide an overview of the Arthritis Foundation’s national and chapter-based activities to reduce the burden of arthritis in the workplace; and a discussion of lessons learned in bridging the public private gap in developing and pursuing corporate partnerships for health communication.
Learning Objectives: At the end of the presentation, the participant will be able to
Keywords: Worksite, Collaboration
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Arthritis Foundation - a non-profit whose programs and services will be discussed
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Employee of Arthritis Foundation