Employee Health Promotion Program data is information that is collected about your Employee Health Promotion Program. All Employee Health Promotion Programs should include data as an integral part of the Employee Health Promotion Program plan.

Why should you care about Employee Health Promotion Program data?

Data tells the Wellness story. Data is the tangible evidence of a Wellness Program’s impact.

Building data into Employee Health Promotion Programs

Why bother with Employee Health Promotion Program Data?

You need Employee Health Promotion Program data to:
• Evaluate whether or not your Employee Health Promotion Program is working.
• Answer the ‘so what?’ about the need for a Employee Health Promotion Program.
• Offer information to Senior Management about the impact of the Employee Health Promotion Program.
• Write a budget justification so you can secure Employee Health Promotion Program resources.
• Use Employee Health Promotion Program resources efficiently and market your Employee Health Promotion Program more effectively.

Where to begin collecting Employee Health Promotion Program data:
• MAKE A PLAN to collect the data: decide what, when, and how information will be collected.
• Determine what information is ALREADY BEING COLLECTED.
o For example: use dairy sales information in the dining center to measure the impact of a milk marketing/dairy month campaign.
• Start collecting JUST A FEW small pieces of information. Be innovative!
o For example: BMI, APFT scores (before & after), tobacco quit rates

IT’S NEVER TO LATE TO START collecting Employee Health Promotion Program data.

Innovative Employee Health Promotion Program data strategies
• Use local college/graduate students to help collect, input, and analyze Employee Health Promotion Program information.
• If your employer has an internship program, get to know the Internship Director. Take advantage of intern resources – including having the Director and/or interns implement the data collection plan for your Employee Health Promotion Program.
• Use information to let upper management know about the Employee Health Promotion Programs affect on the employees.

Present this information at their monthly/quarterly meetings.
• Use innovative follow-up strategies to get information. Phone calls can be effective, but also consider email, mailed surveys with return postage provided, and going to the units in person to collect the information.
• Make data collection ‘fun’ for Employee Health Promotion Program members.
o For example: use a team approach – the team with the ‘best’ overall results gets some sort of award or recognition.
• ALWAYS relate the impact of your Employee Health Promotion Program to readiness.

Manage Employee Health Promotion Program information electronically.
• Storing Employee Health Promotion Program outcomes information electronically is the best way to manage that information.
• An electronic system will enable you to review and analyze the information more efficiently.
• Scan old surveys and other Employee Health Promotion Program information that exist only on paper into .pdf format for permanent storage.

Find the Employee Health Promotion Program system that works best for you.
• Some staff members are more comfortable with spreadsheet applications; others prefer to work with database applications.
• You will be more likely to use a Employee Health Promotion Program that you are familiar and/or comfortable with.
• Standardize information collection and organization. Keep information columns/fields in the same order for all Employee Health Promotion Programs.

Keep the Employee Health Promotion Program as simple as possible.
• You do not have to be a Wellness Programming wizard or use complicated data entry interfaces in order to manage Employee Health Promotion Program outcomes information.
• A simple spreadsheet is an excellent way to keep your information organized.

Store all Employee Health Promotion Program data numerically.
• Using numbers (instead of words) will make the information much easier to enter and analyze. For example: use “1” for yes; “0” for no OR “1” for male; “2” for female.
• Number survey responses that contain strings of words. For example: instead of entering the responses: “patient education videos”, “news,” or “no TV,” number the responses so you only have to enter “1,” “2,” or “3.”

Label all Employee Health Promotion Program data clearly.
• Ensure that all the data columns, rows, or fields are labeled. The information is worthless if you don’t know what information is in which column.
• The spreadsheet/database should include an explanation for column, row, field, and data abbreviations and a key for numbered responses.

Use consistent Employee Health Promotion Program data units.
• Ensure that all information entered into a given column is expressed with the same unit of measure. For example, enter all heights as total inches, not as a combination of feet and inches.
Putting your data in order by using a simple system that works for you will enable you to track participant accomplishments. Keeping your information organized also makes it easier to communicate Employee Health Promotion Program impact to leadership and make Employee Health Promotion Program improvements as needed.