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Wellsource, Inc. To Launch First in New Series of Health Assessment Programs

Posted on: Monday, 17 December 2007, 12:00 CST

Wellsource, Inc., a wellness solutions provider, announces the release of its Personal Wellness Profile™ (PWP) -- Advantage Edition, the first in a series of comprehensive new health assessment programs. The program is geared toward organizations needing highly customizable, simple to administer wellness options designed to lower healthcare costs and improve employee productivity and health.

Rising health claims and high insurance costs continue to burden businesses as the result of an unhealthy workforce. For instance chronic health conditions, many of which are preventable, cost the economy up to $1 trillion a year in medical expenses and lost productivity, estimates the Milken Institute. But increasingly, organizations of all sizes are turning to wellness programs as an effective strategy to combat this national epidemic. The number of employers offering wellness programs has increased from 57 percent in 2003 to 68 percent in 2007, according to the SHRM 2007 Benefits Survey.

Developed by a team of health promotion specialists including doctors, health educators, mental and public health professionals, and nutritionists, PWP Advantage offers enhanced new features designed specifically to address the evolving needs of employers today. PWP Advantage introduces a new kiosk data collection option; allows for extensive customization of personal and administrative reports; and facilitates individualized follow-up, health coaching, goal-setting and intervention programs for employees.

To accommodate organizations that do not have the time or resources for one-on-one counseling after the assessment, Wellsource has developed a companion to the PWP Advantage Personal Report, the Healthy Living Guidelines DVD. This 90-minute DVD walks participants through each section of their assessment results, explaining their overall wellness and health risk scores, and educates them on how to achieve optimal health. The Healthy Living Guidelines DVD allows employers of any size to provide participants with the post-assessment feedback and encouragement employees need, while staying within a budget.

"Wellsource is committed to delivering a full spectrum of wellness solutions necessary for organizations to succeed in curbing rising healthcare costs and increasing productivity," says Don Hall, DrPH, CHES and founder, CEO and board chair of Wellsource. "PWP Advantage will provide an unprecedented level of customization to self-administered workplace wellness programs, and ultimately help employers increase the health awareness of their employees."

With guidance from experts at Wellsource, employers, wellness coordinators, health plans, benefits brokers and wellness consultants can build a unique solution to directly respond to their employees' or members' wellness needs. Examples of new features within PWP Advantage include:

New questions based on current research in the areas of occupational health, mental/emotional health, productivity, key factors linked to excess health costs, and work/life satisfaction;

Customized report options, including the Wellsource® Productivity & Economic Benefits Report, which estimates a company's potential cost savings in health claims, productivity, and work loss days based on improvement in the number of health risk factors present in the organization;

Translation of the assessment and Personal Report into any language and dialect for one employee, an entire employee population or multiple languages or dialects within an organization. This enables all participants to properly complete the assessment and fully understand and engage with results;

Personalized messaging and branding on the Personal Report through counselor notes, corporate logos and taglines, optional web resource links, and demographically relevant photos;

Efficient data sharing between internal and external databases or between vendors, saving time and reducing data entry errors.

About Wellsource Inc.

Founded in 1979, Portland, Ore.-based Wellsource, Inc. is a leading provider of comprehensive wellness solutions to organizations seeking to lower healthcare costs and improve employee health and productivity. Its solutions are designed to help both employers and employees get the best return for their investments in wellness through a win-win approach. Wellsource® wellness solutions encompass scientifically based health risk assessments and intervention programs, wellness consulting and training seminars, and economic benefit reporting tools that meet the needs of businesses today. For more information please visit www.wellsource.com.

Source: Business Wire

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