PHOENIX, AZ—AHCCCS, the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, recently received Gold level recognition from the Healthy Arizona Worksite Program for excellence in worksite wellness.
In the last year, the AHCCCS Human Resource and Development division instituted Healthy Living, a health and wellness-related program designed to encourage fitness and exercise, general nutrition, knowledge and education, and awareness of whole body health.
“As an agency in the business of providing healthcare, we emphasize whole person health as much for our employees as we do our members. Creating diverse, informative and accessible opportunities for AHCCCS employees to focus on their health and wellness is integral to our agency’s mission and values,” said Tom Betlach, AHCCCS director.
With a workforce of just over 1000 employees, 23% who work from virtual offices and another 30% who telework one or more day per week, designing a program inclusive of all staff was no small feat! On-site physical activities like yoga, dancing, and stair climb and fitness challenges, are supplemented with livestreamed lunchtime education sessions, weekend hikes in various worksite locations, and a robust online repository of healthy living resources.
“In developing the Healthy Living program strategy, inclusiveness and maximum participation were top goals. Using technology – livestreamed webinars and a comprehensive online resource library – we have successfully included our remote staff. Although fairly new, our Healthy Living program is seeing steady increases in employee involvement,” said Roxanne Robles, a key member of the Healthy Living development team. “This Gold Award is valid recognition not only of efforts thus far, but of our continued emphasis on wellness at work.”
The Healthy Arizona Worksite Award, a public health initiative offered by the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH), recognizes employers that are making efforts to positively affect the health and well-being of their employees, their families and their community by implementing comprehensive worksite wellness strategies. The minimum qualifications to be considered for this award include attending the Healthy Arizona Worksite Program training and developing a plan to improve employee health and safety. To qualify for the Silver and Gold levels of the award, employers need to support employee health through policy and systems changes.
For more information, see www.healthyazworksites.org
