Impact of a worksite stress management program on employees' self-reported stress--results from an initial pilot program


Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

4280.0: Tuesday, December 13, 2005 - Board 2

Abstract #104777

Kenton Johnston, MPH, MSIR, MA, Health Intelligence Group, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, 801 Pine Street (3E), Chattanooga, TN 37402, 423-755-5701, Kenton_Johnston@BCBST.com, Sharon Gilley, MA, LPC, Organizational Development, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, 801 Pine Street (1-TC), Chattanooga, TN 37402, Raymond Phillippi, PhD, Health Services Research, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, 801 Pine St. - 3E, Chattanooga, TN 37402, and Allen Naidoo, PhD, Human Resources Strategy and Partnerships, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, 801 Pine Street (1M), Chattanooga, TN 37402.

The objective of this pre-post study was to evaluate the impact of a worksite stress management program on the self-reported stress levels of participants and to determine program efficacy. The program was developed internally and piloted with employees at BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee. Potential participants were identified through Hartman Value Profile (HVP) scores obtained near the time of their original hire. Those who agreed to participate completed four testing instruments at the baseline pre-intervention period and again at the post-intervention period after completing the program. The testing instruments were the HVP, the Occupational Stress Inventory, the McKinley Stress Questionnaire, and the Symptoms of Job Stress Questionnaire. The stress management intervention itself lasted five weeks and involved web-based and classroom education. The five classroom sessions included program orientation, relaxation training, cognitive therapy, instruction on time management, and coaching on lifestyle behavior modification. The web-based education combined the classroom material with interactive modules that addressed stress management techniques and personal vulnerability to stress. In total, 35 participants completed the study. Findings show the intervention produced a statistically significant (p <=0.05) reduction in participants' self-reported stress based on mean scores from each of the four testing instruments. Given these positive findings, the program is scheduled for roll out to a larger number of employees with the potential for an evaluation at a larger scale. In addition, six month follow up will be carried out on the pilot participants to determine if the program had lasting impact on employees' self-reported stress.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

1. Describe common identifiers of job-related stress based on employee self-report across a variety of testing instruments.
2. Identify and describe four testing instruments used to measure employees’ self-reported stress levels.
3. Identify and describe the health education components of a pilot worksite stress management program.
4. Describe and evaluate the impact that a pilot worksite stress management program had on the self-reported stress levels of participants.

Keywords: Stress, Workforce

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Worksite Health Promotion

The 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition (December 10-14, 2005) of APHA