Diabetes - how employers can defuse a looming time bomb in their workforce

This study draws upon a dataset containing 99,558 responses across 55 employers with an average of 1,810 responses per employer. Data collected in calendar year 2009 contain information on health risks, biometrics and self-reported absence and job performance. We explored the productivity-related outcomes (absence and job performance) for employees with diabetes compared to those without diabetes. We find that levels of awareness of diabetes varies for individuals with different co-morbid chronic conditions. The models control for age, gender, occupation, body mass and the presence of 20 chronic conditions. All else equal, the likelihood of diabetes generally increases with body mass index and is highest for individuals with the following self-reported chronic health conditions: hypertension, heart disease, high cholesterol, GERD, sleeping disorders and anxiety. Employers can influence both the prevention of Type 2 diabetes and help control the effects of diabetes for their employees who are already diagnosed. Diabetes awareness systematically varied by chronic co-morbidities, for examples, individuals with migraines and headaches had the lowest awareness level of their own diabetes whereas those with obesity had the highest. Awareness campaigns among providers targeting other chronic conditions besides diabetes may also be warranted.