Wellness Watch January 2010

Resolve to Help Employees Kick the Tobacco Habit in 2010

The first of January comes along every year and with it usually comes resolve for many of us to adopt a new healthy behavior or to stop an unhealthy habit. For a smoker, kicking a tobacco habit is a resolution that has the most impact on living a healthy life. It is estimated that over 34 million people want to stop smoking. Most people who quit smoking for good have tried several times before they are successful.

As an employer, lowering the incident of tobacco use among employees is a resolution to keep throughout the year. It is estimated that a smoker costs $3,561 a year in direct medical costs and lost productivity due to smoking-related illness, according to the Center for Disease Control¹. Making sure that your organization has a comprehensive, on-going smoking cessation program that address smokers at all levels of their readiness to stop is an important goal. Here are some implementation ideas:

• Make your workplace smoke-free and offer programs that support good nutrition and exercise.
• Communicate to employees the importance of quitting and your organization’s support in their quitting.
• Make sure your health plan offers effective treatment for smoking cessation including online and telephonic support, and covers pharmacotherapy.
• Disseminate the American Lung Association and American Cancer Society smoking cessation information on a regular basis.
• Offer a quarterly “Are you Thinking of Quitting” information session led by a trained tobacco cessation specialist who outlines the latest pharmacotherapy, nicotine replacement aids and support ideas.
• Offer a variety of on-site programs such as hypnosis, meditation and stress workshops that help people to quit.
• Run on-site smoking cessation clinics periodically and allow relapsed smokers to join the group again.
• Publicize local hospital and clinic programs.
• Offer incentives for healthy behaviors.

Taking steps to good health shouldn’t be something to focus on solely in January but an ongoing process over the course of the year. As an employer, when employees successfully make healthy behavioral changes, whatever time of year, it is good for business. They lead to lower health care costs, better on-the-job-performance and less absenteeism. Helping employees who smoke to quit is one of the biggest bangs for your wellness bucks.