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

Abstract #107562

Kirsty J. Singer, Health Council of South Florida, 8095 NW 12th St, Suite 300, Miami, FL 33126, 305.592.1452, ksinger@healthcouncil.org, Sonya R. Albury, MSW, Executive Director, Health Council of South Florida, 8095 NW 12 Street, Miami, FL 33126, Vianca H. Stubbs, MPH, Health Council of South Florida, Inc., 8095 NW 12 Street, Suite 300, Miami, FL 33126, and Andrew Lanum, Robert Stempel School of Public Health, Florida International University, University Park HLS 595, 11200 SW 8th St, Miami, FL 33199.

National studies to evaluate the health and cost-effectiveness of workplace health promotion programs in the U.S. have focused primarily on very large businesses, but the unique attributes and health promotion needs of smaller and mid-sized firms have been largely understudied (O'Donnell 2002). Miami-Dade County is home to over 61,000 companies, the majority of which have fewer than 20 workers, and another 4,000 are between 20-99 employees. There is currently no centrally located coordinating body in the county to collect and disseminate health promotion program information, and only a small portion of area employers are aware of the resources available for designing or implementing health promotion programs for their employees. As a result, far fewer programs are implemented than could be.

The Exploring Worksite Wellness Initiative (EWWI), was developed as a collaborative effort between the Health Council of South Florida (HCSF), the Miami-Dade Health Department, and Florida International University, funded by the Health Foundation of South Florida, to assess the interest level of mid-size firms in Miami-Dade county in a flexible model for worksite wellness tailored to the their specific needs, and to develop such a model based on initial interest and needs assessment research, successful local examples, and established national standards Businesses interviewed were mid-sized firms with between 20-99 employees, representing varied industries as well as the diverse workforce of Miami-Dade county. To provide maximum accessibility to smaller businesses, the EWWI model will emphasize community collaboration, service and resource integration, and offer tiered options at various cost levels.

Learning Objectives: Learning Objectives

At the end of the session, participants will be able to
• describe the unique needs of small and mid-size firms in a large urban area with respect to worksite wellness promotion
• identify worksite wellness program options at various cost levels
• analyze the role of resource-sharing and collaboration in program development for smaller firms
• list the major health interest priorities and needs of Miami-Dade’s diverse communities
• apply model and/or strategies for creating worksite wellness programs responsive to specific needs

Keywords: Worksite, Resource Development

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