Steven Rippentrop, MD, MPH, MA, Occupational and Environmental Resident, University of Iowa
Abstract provided by PI: There are more than 10,000 new nonfatal injuries or illnesses in US workplaces every day. In order to address these injuries and the burden of chronic illness among workers, many enterprises have created wellness programs. These programs frequently use health outcomes described in terms of dollars saved, increased productivity, and decreased injury rates. Many workplace wellness programs, however, struggle to be successful, in part, because the most commonly used metrics are business friendly and typically not translated into outcomes that are highly valued by workers. The investigators propose to use the wellLdescribed methods from performance theory and ethnography to identify worker-centered health and safety values. These methods include participant observation, focus groups, and interviews to capture, from workers themselves, what aspects and attributes of health are important to them. These results will be used to make recommendations for a new integrated worker protection and health promotion program based on worker-centered health and safety values, established best practices, and accepted evidenceLbased findings .
| Results & Dissemination |
In progress.