WELLNESS 2022:
"Teamwork Makes the Dream Work"
ESHCA Wellness Newsletter
June 2022
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Wellness Company of the Year 2021 |
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Congratulations to the ESHCA Wellness Companies of the Year!
- Hanson - overall and medium division
- DA Collins - large
- DH Smith - small
Results are based on participation in the incentive program. Earn "Wellness Bucks" practicing healthy behaviors and help your company win "The Golden Boot"!!!
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What is the criteria to win the "Golden Boot"?
The $200 Annual Physical Incentive carries the most weight, review the steps below!
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Annual Physical Incentive ($200 incentive) |
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3 Easy Steps, each highlighting a Wellness Objective. Being self-educated on your health and your health benefits increases the likelihood of engaging in healthy behaviors that save ESHCA health benefits money. Analysis of our health benefit spend suggests the annual physical is the best way to protect our health insurance from high-cost claims. Thus, we offer the $200 Annual Physical Incentive (member and member-spouse), see details below. FYI, I post my results annually as an example.
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1) General Health Assessment (may have filled out at Safety Meeting)
- Review your personal health habits.
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note: this can be filled out annually independent of the annual physical incentive for a $25 incentive (available to the member and the member-spouse).
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See my GHA as an example
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- 2) MD Biometric Form - "Know Your Numbers"
- What do you look like on the inside?
- Blood pressure, blood glucose, cholesterol, and body weight are key indicators of current and future health.
- Can you see where choices on the General Health Assessment affect your "Numbers"?
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See my MD Biometric Form as an example.
- Note: my doctor has a member portal giving me access to my blood work results, I used it to fill out my form. Ask your doctor if they provide such a tool, I have found it to be very beneficial!
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- 3) Explanation of Benefits
- Identified by it's heading, "THIS IS NOT A BILL"
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provide page 1 (front and back), click for example.
- An EOB (mailed from MVP) is issued for each medical appointment covered by ESHCA health benefits. It is advantageous to have access to them in case you have questions regarding charges.
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Questions: contact Donna or call the number on your membership card.
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EOB's can also be downloaded using the MVP Mobile App or the online Member Portal.
- If you do not use digital resources, consider keeping a paper copy on file.
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"Take Action" - make lifestyle changes to improve your GHA and MD Biometric Form
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ESHCA offers incentives to participate in "Take Action" health challenges such as:
- 1) Nutrition Challenge (November and January)
- 2) "Used" Gym Membership or Activity Log
- record 36 workouts
- 3) Smoking Cessation Program
- "The Butt Stops Here" (MVP)
- 4) Newsletter Challenges
Personal reflections: What have I learned from the GHA and the "Know Your Numbers" program? "Small steps" pay big dividends:
- Time: the longer you practice a healthy behavior, the better the result! Be good year round, however, 3-months before blood work try a bit harder to tighten things up. For example, an A1C score measures blood sugar over a 2-3 month period, if one wants to improve that reading it will require a prolonged period of effort (2-3 months).
- Nutrition: use fresh fruits and vegetables (5 servings of produce each day) in place of processed carbohydrates (breads and cereals).
- Exercise: cardio 30 minutes 5 days per week (no fancy equipment, just put headphones on and walk/jog up and down the stairs). FYI, I started with 5 minutes/day and worked up over a couple of years.
- Less caffeine - reduces feeling of being "nervous and uptight" along with agitation and "racing heart". Also, may be helpful in lowering blood pressure (see this months challenge).
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$25 June Incentive Challenge: Improve Blood Pressure |
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Potassium reduces blood pressure, Sodium raises blood pressure
- 98% do not get an adequate amount of dietary potassium (4,700mg/day)
- 90% get too much sodium. The RDA is 1,500-2,300mg/day, however, the average adult ingests 3,400mg/day!
- The relationship: potassium "flushes" sodium out of the body. The Standard American Diet (SAD) is low potassium and high sodium resulting in a "nutritional double-whammy" when it comes to high blood pressure.
Objective:
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1) Read the article, use the information (or do your own research) to fill out the worksheet.
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2) Download the Potassium-Sodium Worksheet.
- If you are unable to print, make your own, I will take it!
- 3) Record 5 potassium rich foods you can incorporate into your diet and 5 high-sodium foods they could possibly replace or that you could remove.
- 4) Email (good cellphone picture), mail, or fax a copy of the Potassium-Sodium Worksheet (submit by 7/15).
- 5) Reminder: all members of the household are encouraged to participate, however, only one (1) incentive card can be issued to each member-household with the exception that more than one employee-member lives in a given household.
Special offer: Get your crew involved!!!
- Take the lead, be a "Wellness Champion". Encourage the members of your crew to participate, have a group discussion and develop strategies to be successful on the job (Tool Box Talk). Record all your names on one "Potassium-Sodium Worksheet" and send it in, each will receive the $25 incentive (note: ESHCA members only).
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- Reminder: ESHCA and QCI encourage you to complete an annual review of your retirement benefits. Contact Ed, Tim, or Colby to schedule.
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Note: there is a $25 incentive to have the consultation, contact me (Patrick) and let me know the date and which QCI representative you met with so I can verify. This incentive is available only to the member and would count as 1 of your 6 newsletter challenges for the year.
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The Wellness Program offers a number of incentive programs encouraging, motivating, and rewarding you to "practice" a healthy lifestyle. Check out the 2022 Wellness Incentive Program:
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