Human Resources: New ACTion Assessment and Planning Tool Helps Companies Launch Worksite Wellness Programs

San Diego, Cal. / April 24, 2008 – Most companies’ wellness programs are doomed from the start, largely due to a lack of pre-planning. ACI Specialty Benefits is using a revolutionary approach to wellness with ACTion – a six-step assessment and preparedness tool that identifies an organization’s readiness level and equips it to avoid the common obstacles that prevent such programs from becoming a successful reality.

“So many efforts to implement wellness program fail before even getting off the ground,” says Dr. Ann D. Clark, founder and CEO of ACI Specialty Benefits. “I always hear ‘What about the ROI?’ or ‘How do we know this will work for us?’ but what people are really saying is, ‘I don’t know if we’re ready for wellness.’”

A recent National Worksite Health Promotion Survey reports that five obstacles impede successful implementations of worksite wellness programs: Lack of employee interest; insufficient staff resources; inadequate funds; failure to engage high-risk employees; and the inability to elicit the support of upper management.

“Preplanning is the focus of ACTion,” Dr. Clark adds. “ACI is excited to help organizations define their wellness goals, create a customized plan to reach those goals, and ultimately implement a fool-proof wellness plan tailored to the values of the target population and workplace culture.”

With six simple yet effective steps – Awareness, Contemplation, Testing, Initiation, Outcome, and Next step – ACTion creates a climate for change, a desire for change and a measurable, sustainable willingness to change. The first three steps assess leadership’s buy-in, the organization’s history of change behavior, corporate culture and values, with key metrics to measure program efficacy. The final three steps then focus on program specifics and internal branding, marketing and promotion for the program.

Moving forward with a timeline, outlined goals, and expected outcomes is key, says Dr. Clark. “With all of these components in place, a corporation will attain a long-standing and successful wellness program.”

“Change is a process, not an event,” says Danelle Pereira, ACI’s Wellness Director. The ACTion system is based on a model of change originally developed by renowned behavioral scientist Prochaska. This model has been the basis for developing effective interventions to promote health behavior change. It has been successfully applied to a wide range of problem behaviors including smoking cessation, exercise, alcohol abuse and stress management, among others. ACI Specialty Benefits’ model of change at an organizational level insures wellness interventions match the specific needs of an organization.

About ACI Specialty Benefits:

ACI Specialty Benefits provides Employee Assistance Programs, Wellness, Work/life, Concierge and Crisis Support services to corporations worldwide. In 2006, ACI ranked among the nation’s Top Ten list of EAP providers by Business Insurance and Workforce Management magazine. Established in 1983, ACI grew to international prominence serving more than 1.5 million people world-wide. For more information, visit www.acispecialtybenefits.com

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