Founder and Race Director, Jeff Galloway, has cited promising employee statistics in companies with active wellness programs. The numbers might surprise you...
Comprehensive health approaches to employee wellness have clearly become a growing trend in the 21st century. In the corporate workplace, fitness programs have been receiving increased attention as corporate executives recognize that improved health and wellness of employees translates into a healthier bottom line that improves not only their employees’ health but their company’s financial health.
According to The American Journal of Preventative Medicine, “employers who invest in worksite health promotion programs can see a monetary return of $3-6 for every dollar invested over a two-to-five year period. Documented savings are observed in medical costs, reduced absenteeism, worker’s comp claims, short-term disability costs and loss of worker productivity due to employee health problems.”[1]
The Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk & Fitness Program (KPCRW), now in its twenty-sixth year, is a corporate health and fitness program with a primary focus of keeping employees fit and healthy all year long. KPCRW Race Director Jeff Galloway, US Olympian (1972), is well aware of the current corporate statistics that support the need to implement and provide workplace fitness initiatives.
Galloway cites the following statistics supporting evidence that cost-effectiveness of worksite wellness programs mean:
¨ 28% reduction in sick leave absenteeism;
¨ 26% reduction in use of the health care benefit;
¨ 30% reduced worker’s comp claims and disability management; [2]
“These statistics send a strong message about the critical importance of having employees who are healthy and productive,” said Galloway. “And this is what the Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk program is all about.”
The 2008 Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk & Fitness Program is scheduled to step off on Thursday, September 25, 2008 at 7 p.m. Kicking off the program is an 8-week ‘Get Active Atlanta’ training session, which starts August 4 and runs through September 25. The “Get Active Atlanta” program allows corporate teams to take full advantage of a free eight-week membership at participating Bally Total Fitness centers, preparing participants for the 5K running/walking event on September 25. Other participant perks include discounted packages for Performance Athletic Massages at any of the seven Spa Sydell locations across Atlanta, and weekly fit tips offered by KPCRW Race Director and running guru, Jeff Galloway.
Three informational Captains Kickoff events featuring guest speakers, door prizes and special presentations are scheduled for the following dates:
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 – Park Tavern, 500 10th Street, Atlanta, GA 30309 (at 10th Street and Piedmont Road); featuring Mara Davis, 92.9 DAVE FM
Tuesday, June 17, 2008 – Assurant, 260 Interstate North Circle, Atlanta, GA 30339
Wednesday, July 30, 2008 – Waffle House, 5986 Financial Drive, Norcross, GA 30071
Immediately following the annual 5K Run/Walk (3.1 mile), program participants can loosen up their running shoes and network in a casual environment via hundreds of company picnics -- popularly known as the ‘World’s Largest Office Party.” Last year, the Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk drew more than 16,000 runners and walkers from across metro Atlanta, and culminated with a ‘celebration of fitness’ that included a Health & Fitness Expo, special performances, an awards presentation and a grand fireworks finale.
Sponsors of the 2008 Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk include AJC/ajc.com, WSB-TV, DAVE FM, 680 The Fan, fitAtlanta Magazine, Clear Channel Outdoor, Bally Total Fitness and Phidippides. Sponsorships are still available. For more information on the Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk, please visit www.kpcorporaterunwalk.com.
The Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk & Fitness Program is a unique workplace-organized fitness event that began in 1983 in Atlanta with 900 participants from a handful of companies. Designed to inspire fun, fitness and camaraderie among Atlanta’s corporate community, the annual event attracts more than 16,000 participants from 400-plus companies and is one of the largest workplace organized corporate fitness events in the Southeast. Event highlights of the 26th running event include an eight-week “Get Active Atlanta” training program, Chamber of Commerce Fitness Challenge, 5K run/walk, live music, an awards ceremony, a fireworks finale, and hundreds of office picnics in downtown Atlanta, adjacent to Turner Field.
Kaiser Permanente is the nation’s largest not-for-profit health plan, with more than eight million members in Northern and Southern California, Oregon, Colorado, Hawaii, Georgia, Ohio and the Mid-Atlantic states. Kaiser Permanente of Georgia is the state’s largest non-profit health plan, providing health care services to approximately 275,000 members through 15 medical facilities in metro-Atlanta and a network of affiliated hospitals and physicians.
[1] American Journal of Preventative Medicine (2005)
[2] “Larry Chapman’s 2003 article, ‘Meta-Evaluation of Worksite Health Promotion Economic Return Studies,’ from The American Journal of Health Promotion