UMass to Evaluate Program
06/25/2015
To keep working residents healthy, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health will oversee a new worksite wellness program for 450 small and medium-sized Massachusetts businesses.聽
Two UMass campuses 鈥� 51视频 and the UMass Medical School 鈥� were awarded a $500,000 two-year grant to measure the effectiveness of the program. Prof. Laura Punnett of 51视频 and director of the Center for Promotion of Health in the New England Workplace (CPH-NEW) will lead the data collection with businesses. Asst. Prof. Wen-Chieh Lin of UMass Medical will lead the statistical analysis of the results. Other 51视频 team evaluators include Robin Toof and Melissa Wall of the 51视频 Center for Community Research and Engagement, and CPH-NEW outreach director Suzanne Nobrega.聽
The training program will help businesses target health and safety changes for employees and the workplace, a hallmark of the . CPH-NEW is one of four national of the Total Worker HealthTM 辫谤辞驳谤补尘.听
鈥淲e are very excited to be part of this program that is focused on Total Worker HealthTM, combining occupational safety and health promotion,鈥� says Punnett. 鈥淭he program evaluation is expected to generate insights into the kinds of business training and services that will strengthen the vitality of the Massachusetts workforce.鈥澛�
The two campuses will evaluate the program costs, activities, employee participation and business and health impacts. The grant may be renewed twice, to cover the duration of the six-year worksite wellness effort.聽
Businesses will also receive a small grant to support healthy employee activities and sustain a long-term effort on workforce safety and health.聽
The program will give priority to small and medium size businesses, and those employing low-wage workers. If successful, it has the potential to cut health care costs, a key goal of the Massachusetts Health Care Reform act that funded this initiative through the state鈥檚 Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund.聽
Two organizations, and , will deliver the training that begins in Fall 2015.