Norton Healthcare has been awarded an honorable mention for the C. Everett Koop National Health Awards. Twelve programs were considered for the award this year and of those, there was one Winner and four Honorable Mention designees.

Story by: Norton Healthcare on September 4, 2020

Norton Healthcare has been awarded an honorable mention for the C. Everett Koop National Health Awards. Twelve programs were considered for the award this year and of those, there was one Winner and four Honorable Mention designees.

The awards, named for Dr. Koop, who served as U.S. surgeon general from 1982 to 1989, recognize organizations with outstanding worksite wellness programs. The awards require strong documentation for both health improvement and business impact. Organizations that are recognized must demonstrate health improvements and cost savings from health promotion and disease prevention programs; a culture of health at the workplace and/or in the community; and improvements in health by helping individuals change unhealthy behaviors and reduce health risks.

As a self-insured employer with over 16,000 employees, Norton Healthcare has a wellness program and insurance plans that have been crafted to meet the unique needs of a diverse population. These strategies have helped to control costs, coordinate care and improve employee engagement while supporting employee wellness.

Since its launch in 2012, N Good Health has maintained a high level of employee engagement. In 2019, over 70% of eligible employees and 61% of spouses were involved in the program and earned wellness credit incentives.

The program continues to show notable improvements in health outcomes from participants, including:

• An increase in the number of preventive care visits thus leading to a reduction in the number of and more appropriate use of emergency department visits. These developments have led to lower medical and prescription costs year after year, according to claims data.
• Participants’ health risk score has decreased from 1.73 to 1.25.
• Tobacco use has decreased by 2.6%.
• The number of eligible employees at high risk for hyperlipidemia decreased 1.6%.
• The number of eligible employees at high risk for hypertension decreased 2.5%.

“Leading by example and encouraging those around us helps us promote a culture of wellbeing at Norton Healthcare,” said Allison Ledford, director, Employee Wellness. “We are happy that employees continue engaging in our program and making holistic health and wellness improvements. We are able to take better care of our patients when we take care of ourselves.”