World Health Day is a day to celebrate the World Health Organization (WHO) foundation. This year’s celebration on April 7, 2023 is especially significant as it marks seven decades of promoting health, maintaining global safety, and helping the underserved. Additionally, it is an opportunity to inspire change in healthcare across the world. Each year the celebration focuses on addressing and improving a specific public health concern—this year’s theme is Health for All.
Because you might be wondering how to celebrate World Health Day, we’ve created a list of four creative ways to celebrate in the workplace.
How to Celebrate World Health Day at Work
1. Promoting Mental Health Care
As mental health issues continue to increase, access to healthcare is even more difficult. According to a Mental Health America survey, 28% of respondents who reported having a mental illness were able to obtain the care they needed. Affordability, lack of knowledge of resources available, and inflexible schedules were the top three challenges in finding adequate healthcare. Not only is it important to provide access to mental healthcare services through your health insurance coverage, but it is equally important to create a positive workplace culture for mental health.
2. Supporting Work-Life Balance
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of work-life balance as mental health care issues skyrocketed. As a result, more organizations are looking to focus on general wellness and offering benefits that support all facets of health (physical, mental, social, etc.). One way to nurture overall employee health and well-being is to support work-life balance. Employers need to rethink wellness benefits and take a pulse survey on what they can do to help their employees reach an acceptable equilibrium. From flexible scheduling and hybrid workplaces, to building unique voluntary benefits and elevating company culture, there are plenty of ways to support a more balanced workload.
3. Implementing Stress Management
According to the American Psychological Association, 75% of adults reported higher stress levels in the past year. Additionally, 26% of adults expected stress levels to increase in 2023. Implementing stress management methods, whether through subscriptions for meditation apps, yoga classes, or bringing in third-party vendors to educate and train employees on stress management techniques can provide workers the tools they need to manage their stress better. Another way employers can alleviate stress is managing workloads through increased touch points, as well as delegating projects and tasks more effectively and efficiently.
4. Focusing on Physical Activity and Healthy Eating
Regardless of your benefit offerings, there are smaller ways to support physical activity and healthy eating in the workplace. Perhaps alongside your coffee station, you can install a water refill station. In addition to the sweet treats and drinks in the vending machines, consider healthier options—whether that be a self-serve snack station or nutritious choices in the vending machines is up to you.
If you’re looking for ways to revamp the way you attract and retain employees, explore some of Namely’s incredible talent management features—like continuous feedback, 360 performance management, and goal alignment and tracking. Whatever core HR competencies you seek, Namely is here for you.
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