The many, many benefits of an employee health fair

Health fairs at your work place are a win-win-win situation.

1) Health assessments at the fair, such as blood pressure checks and cancer screenings, alert employees about potential health problems.

2) In a fun environment, employees learn ways to recognize and then manage their own health issues.

3) Health fairs help employers reduce medical costs, show that the employer cares about a worker’s well-being and allow the company to gather valuable health and demographic information for disease prevention.

“A company wellness fair is a great way to introduce wellness initiatives, alert employees to their own health risks and show that you care about employee health,” said Jennifer Carmack, Director of Physicians Quality Care OCCMed.

Health fairs have other benefits, such as providing an opportunity for flu shots or offering demonstrations on how to lift properly or even prepare a healthy meal.

A well-run health fair could have “stations” or booths on a variety of topics, offer demonstrations and include outside vendors, such as the American Red Cross.

“We’ll help you customize your company’s health fair to fit your needs,” said Carmack.

And in compliance with HIPAA and privacy regulations, Physicians Quality Care OCCMed can compile your employees’ health information into a generalized corporate health report to allow you to identify and manage health problems within your organization.

Offer health screenings

Screenings help build awareness of health risks and provide information on how individuals can make changes in their lifestyle to enhance their health. Here are some suggestions for screenings …

  • Blood pressure
  • Vision
  • Hearing
  • Diabetes risk assessment

Promote participation

Incentives and raffle items will help promote participation and build motivation. Consider items that are health-related and/or support the theme of your health fair.

To encourage participation, give each employee a card to be stamped or checked off at each booth or activity he or she visits. And, after the employee’s card is validated with visits to a predetermined number of booths, give the employee a free gift or make him or her eligible to enter their name in a drawing for a larger prize.

Time for an employee health fair?

Start planning now for an event this fall. And why not combine a health fair with annual employee flu shots?

Just contact Jennifer Carmack at jennifer@physiciansqualitycare.com or 731-984-8400 to get started.