Introduction
Welcome or welcome back. Over the last few weeks, we’ve reviewed policy, systems, and environmental changes. Why? Because I needed a refresher and I thought you might need one too, so here we are. Our fourth and final blog in the series will build on all the PSE blogs before (Policy Changes Blog, Systems Changes Blog, and Environmental Changes Blog), wrapping everything all together in an example capacity building grant that Active Southern West Virginia offers to qualifying worksites. The grant is used to fund workplace wellness initiatives. If you are interested in learning more, please check out our website. The 2024-5 Capacity Building Grants are NOW OPEN! Apply here.
Promotions aside, if you just want to understand how Policy, Systems, and Environmental Changes work together to create a culture of health at your workplace, then check out the prior post on Environmental Change. We followed a worksite where its employees were interested in moving more throughout the day, but they felt that they didn’t have enough time during the workday, or they’d get in trouble with management.
In this post, we will use the same example worksite, but we’ll dive deeper into creating an action plan for the worksite so it can obtain its goals and begin cultivating a culture of health at the worksite. If you’d like to learn more, then let’s dive in.
Company X
Company X contacted Active Southern West Virginia because it wanted to create a workplace wellness program for its employees. Company X certified two of its employees in the free six week CDC Work@Health training program that Active SWV offers. During the certification process, Company X discovered, by means of the CDC Health ScoreCard and a confidential employee survey, that its employees wanted more opportunities for physical activity throughout their workday.
Company X wants to use the grant money to help fund walking trail improvements, create signage, and purchase employee participation incentives.
P, S, E Changes
By the end of the grant cycle, we will implement a new policy in our workplace that allows for workers to take two15-minutes breaks per day.
Action Steps
- Develop a written policy to allow workers to take two 15-minute breaks per day, in addition to a 30-minute lunchbreak, per 8-hour shift.
- Target Completion Date: 12/31/2024
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
- Obtain approval for the new policy.
- Target Completion Date: 01/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Tina Ross, Executive Director & Wellness Committee
- Provide information regarding new policy to all employees.
- Target Completion Date: 01/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
1. The worksite will create a wellness committee to encourage wellness at the worksite.
a. Appoint committee across all employee and managerial levels, to ensure representation.
- Target Completion Date: 11/30/2024
- Responsible Party: Tina Ross, Executive Director
b. Announce and promote new committee to employees across all communication channels.
- Target Completion Date: 01/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Lilly Adler, Wellness Committee Member
c. Hold first meeting and establish an agreed upon meeting schedule.
- Target Completion Date: 12/31/2024
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
d. Create a communication and dissemination plan for all wellness related activities.
- Target Completion Date: 01/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
2. The worksite will offer two employee-lead group walks during new 15-minute breaks.
a. Employees will vote on a morning break time and an afternoon break time for those interested in scheduled breaks.
- Target Completion Date: 02/28/2025
- Responsible Party: Employees
b. Worksite will have a monthly walking calendar where employees can sign-up to lead or participate.
- Target Completion Date: 03/30/2025
- Responsible Party: Employees and Wellness Committee
c. The Walking calendar will be available across worksite communication channels.
- Target Completion Date: 03/30/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
3. The worksite will participate in the New Year’s Eve Walk with Ease Challenge facilitated by Active Southern West Virginia.
a. Worksite will promote and encourage employees to sign-up for and enroll in the Walk with Ease Challenge.
- Target Completion Date: 12/31/2024
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
b. Worksite will offer incentives for employee participation.
- Target Completion Date:02/28/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
c. Worksite will offer a large raffle prize drawing for all employees who completed the program.
- Target Completion Date: 02/28/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
1. The worksite will create an indoor walking trail.
a. Worksite will map out an indoor walking trail and include alternative routes or add-on sections.
- Target Completion Date: 12/31/2024
- Responsible Party: Lilly Adler, Work@Health Representative
b. Worksite will calculate the trail to obtain target step goals and/or milage goals.
- Target Completion Date: 12/31/2024
- Responsible Party: Lilly Adler, Work@Health Representative
c. Worksite will create a map with the steps and milage, including all alternative routes and add-ons.
- Target Completion Date: 12/31/2024
- Responsible Party: Lilly Adler, Work@Health Representative
d. Worksite will post said map physically at the worksite and across all communication channels.
- Target Completion Date: 12/31/2024
- Responsible Party: Lilly Adler, Work@Health Representative
2. The worksite will make improvements to an old onsite walking trail.
a. Worksite will assess old onsite walking trail and obtain a list of improvements and necessary supplies.
- Target Completion Date: 03/30/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
b. Worksite will purchase all necessary supplies.
- Target Completion Date: 04/30/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
c. Worksite will host a “Trail Improvement Party” wherein employees will volunteer time and worksite will provide food and drink for employees and families.
- Target Completion Date: 05/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Employees/Wellness Committee
d. Worksite will map the outdoor walking trail and include alternative routes or add-on sections.
- Target Completion Date: 05/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
e. Worksite will calculate the trail to obtain target step goals and/or milage goals.
- Target Completion Date: 05/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
f. Worksite will create a map with the steps and milage, including all alternative routes and add-ons.
- Target Completion Date: 05/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
g. Worksite will post said map physically at the worksite and across all communication channels.
- Target Completion Date: 05/31/2025
- Responsible Party: Wellness Committee
Closing
I know this is a lot here, but I purposely broke everything down into much smaller steps so you can see the progress you are making by continually checking off action items. Also, I provided a “pretty” example where every action seems to flow effortlessly into the next and the policy and system and environmental changes all seem to work together in a symbiotic relationship.
It doesn’t always work this way. Life is messy. Trying to establish new habits is hard.
So, please realize that not all policy, systems, and environmental changes flow this well, nor are they always linear. They can be, but they don’t have to be.
You don’t always go from policy changes to system changes to environment changes, and *poof* you’re done. Sometimes you may not start with policy, you might double back to a particular change or sometimes they are all independent of each other but each supporting your culture of health for the current grant year.
One of the only requirements for Active Southern West Virginia’s Capacity Building Grant, is that there needs to be at least three PSE changes. However that requirement best fits your workplace in any given year is up to you. It’s going to change.
Don’t stress about the process, just understand the pieces and apply it to your needs. How can you apply three PSE changes to your worksite to help create or support a culture of health? How can Active SWV help you?
Capacity Building Grant
I think that about wraps up this blog series. Thanks for hanging out and reading. I hope you’ll consider applying for our grant. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns.
Stay Active!
Kelly Fox
Workplace Wellness Director
Active Southern West Virginia
