Review of domestic experience in implementing corporate health promotion programs aimed at correcting behavioral risk factors

Purpose. The impact of a workplace health promotion program was evaluated to determine changes in the number and level of seven behavioral risks and self-reported illness days. Design. The study employed a pretest/posttest intervention group (N=7,178) with a two-year follow-up and a time-lagged, nonequivalent comparison group (N=7,101). Setting. The study population was drawn from a large manufacturing company with more than 100 United States locations. Subjects. Approximately one half of the study population was 40 years of age or older, 75 % were males, 90 % were white, and about 40 % were hourly manufacturing employees. Intervention. The program consisted of 1) training and support of coordinators; 2) health risk appraisals; 3) on-site classes, safety meetings, and self-help options; 4) environmental changes, e.g., smoking policy, cafeteria offerings, and blood pressure machines; and 5) recognition. Measures. A 38-item health appraisal included self-report of illness days and behavioral risks, as well as information from company physical examinations. Results. Both the number and the level of behavioral risk factors improved over two years. The proportion of employees with three or more risk factors decreased by 14% (p<.001). The number of self-reported illness days in this group decreased by 12% during the same period (p<.001). No change in illness days was observed in the group with fewer than three risk factors. Risk levels improved (range = 4.5% to 79%) for six of seven factors among high-risk individuals. Conclusions. This intervention appears to have had a positive impact on the number and level of behavioral risk factors; most of the improvement occurred among high-risk participants. The extent to which this study's results can be generalized to other populations is limited by several methodological limitations including several key variables are self-reported, a time-lagged rather than concurrent comparison group was used, the intervention group response rate was low, and the intervention group differed from the comparison group on four of five demographic variables.

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Psychosocial and Behavioral Risk Factors for Coronary Heart Disease in Menopausal Women

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e494282008-001 ◽

2008 ◽

Author(s):

Adriana Baban ◽

Eva Kallay ◽

Doina Colcear ◽

Dumitru Zdrenghea

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Coronary Heart Disease ◽

Heart Disease ◽

Behavioral Risk Factors ◽

Behavioral Risk ◽

Menopausal Women

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Psychological and Behavioral Predictors of Vaccine Efficacy: Considerations for COVID-19

Perspectives on Psychological Science ◽

10.1177/1745691621989243 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 174569162198924

Author(s):

Annelise A. Madison ◽

M. Rosie Shrout ◽

Megan E. Renna ◽

Janice K. Kiecolt-Glaser

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Side Effects ◽

Vaccine Efficacy ◽

Psychological Factors ◽

Behavioral Interventions ◽

Vulnerable Groups ◽

Behavioral Risk Factors ◽

Behavioral Risk ◽

Vaccine Response ◽

The Impact

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine candidates are being evaluated, with the goal of conferring immunity on the highest percentage of people who receive the vaccine as possible. It is noteworthy that vaccine efficacy depends not only on the vaccine but also on characteristics of the vaccinated. Over the past 30 years, a series of studies has documented the impact of psychological factors on the immune system’s vaccine response. Robust evidence has demonstrated that stress, depression, loneliness, and poor health behaviors can impair the immune system’s response to vaccines, and this effect may be greatest in vulnerable groups such as the elderly. Psychological factors are also implicated in the prevalence and severity of vaccine-related side effects. These findings have generalized across many vaccine types and therefore may be relevant to the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. In this review, we discuss these psychological and behavioral risk factors for poor vaccine responses, their relevance to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as targeted psychological and behavioral interventions to boost vaccine efficacy and reduce side effects. Recent data suggest these psychological and behavioral risk factors are highly prevalent during the COVID-19 pandemic, but intervention research suggests that psychological and behavioral interventions can increase vaccine efficacy.

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Effects of Behavioral Risk Factors and Social-Environmental Factors on Non-Communicable Diseases in South Korea: A National Survey Approach

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18020612 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 612

Author(s):

Nam Jeong Jeong ◽

Eunil Park ◽

Angel P. del Pobil

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Environmental Factors ◽

South Korea ◽

Communicable Diseases ◽

Behavioral Risk Factors ◽

Behavioral Risk ◽

Non Communicable Diseases ◽

Path Analyses ◽

Social Environmental ◽

Social Environmental Factors

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are one of the major health threats in the world. Thus, identifying the factors that influence NCDs is crucial to monitor and manage diseases. This study investigates the effects of social-environmental and behavioral risk factors on NCDs as well as the effects of social-environmental factors on behavioral risk factors using an integrated research model. This study used a dataset from the 2017 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. After filtering incomplete responses, 5462 valid responses remained. Items including one’s social-environmental factors (household income, education level, and region), behavioral factors (alcohol use, tobacco use, and physical activity), and NCDs histories were used for analyses. To develop a comprehensive index of each factor that allows comparison between different concepts, the researchers assigned scores to indicators of the factors and calculated a ratio of the scores. A series of path analyses were conducted to determine the extent of relationships among NCDs and risk factors. The results showed that social-environmental factors have notable effects on stroke, myocardial infarction, angina, diabetes, and gastric, liver, colon, lung, and thyroid cancers. The results indicate that the effects of social-environmental and behavioral risk factors on NCDs vary across the different types of diseases. The effects of social-environmental factors and behavioral risk factors significantly affected NCDs. However, the effect of social-environmental factors on behavioral risk factors was not supported. Furthermore, social-environmental factors and behavioral risk factors affect NCDs in a similar way. However, the effects of behavioral risk factors were smaller than those of social-environmental factors. The current research suggests taking a comprehensive view of risk factors to further understand the antecedents of NCDs in South Korea.

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Behavioral Risk Factors in Coronary Artery Disease

Annual Review of Medicine ◽

10.1146/annurev.me.29.020178.002551 ◽

1978 ◽

Vol 29 (1) ◽

pp. 543-562 ◽

Cited By ~ 86

Author(s):

C D Jenkins

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Coronary Artery Disease ◽

Coronary Artery ◽

Behavioral Risk Factors ◽

Behavioral Risk ◽

Artery Disease

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The Shape up Challenge: A Community-Based Worksite Exercise Competition

American Journal of Health Promotion ◽

10.4278/0890-1171-11.1.23 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 23-34 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Susan M. Blake ◽

Carl J. Caspersen ◽

John Finnegan ◽

Richard A. Crow ◽

Maurice B. Mittlemark ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Promotion ◽

Health Program ◽

Employee Participation ◽

Behavioral Risk ◽

Participation Rates ◽

Community Based ◽

Exercise Maintenance ◽

Health Promotion Programs ◽

Work Units ◽

Heart Health Program

Purpose. To assess organizational and employee participation during three community-wide worksite exercise competitions in two communities. Design. A one-group, posttest-only design was used. Lack of controls, exercise baseline, and the short-term nature of the interventions were limitations. Setting. The Minnesota Heart Health Program conducted annual exercise campaigns between 1982 and 1989 within three intervention communities to reduce behavioral risk for cardiovascular disease. The Shape Up Challenge was a worksite exercise competition designed, in conjunction with other campaign activities, to increase levels of physical activity. Subjects. A total of 119 participating companies in two Minnesota communities, and 17,626 employees within these worksites, composed the subjects in this study. Intervention. Eligible worksites were invited to participate in a month-long competition during which employees recorded minutes spent daily in aerobic activities. Incentives were established to promote intragroup cooperation and intergroup competition. Companies competed for awards that were based on average minutes of exercise per employee versus per participant. Measures. Numbers of companies recruited and participating, campaign activities, minutes of exercise, and costs were recorded on implementation logs. Companies completed surveys describing business type, number and sex of employees, existing health promotion programs, and perceived benefits of participation. Results. Of the 365 companies invited to participate, 33 % participated (range 15 % to 50%). Participating companies were more likely than nonparticipating companies to offer other health promotion programs and perceived greater benefits from participation. Women and smaller companies had significantly greater participation rates than men and larger companies. Average employee participation rates ranged from as high as 84% in smaller organizations to as low as 16% as organization size increased. Conclusions. Community-based worksite exercise competitions appear to be a viable strategy for promoting employee exercise, particularly in smaller companies. Group-based contingencies applied in natural work units may facilitate employee participation. Further research is needed to assess the relative efficacy of this approach, compare alternative incentives, and identify strategies to enhance exercise maintenance after the intervention has ceased.

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Abstract WP182: Trends in Acute Ischemic Stroke Hospitalizations and Risk Factors Among Young Adults: 12 Years of Nationally Representative Data

Stroke ◽

10.1161/str.48.suppl_1.wp182 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 48 (suppl_1) ◽

Author(s):

Urvish K Patel ◽

Priti Poojary ◽

Vishal Jani ◽

Mandip S Dhamoon

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Older Adults ◽

Young Adults ◽

Ischemic Stroke ◽

Length Of Stay ◽

Acute Ischemic Stroke ◽

Stroke Risk ◽

Behavioral Risk Factors ◽

Behavioral Risk ◽

Stroke Risk Factors

Background: There is limited recent population-based data of trends in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) hospitalization rates among young adults (YA). Rising prevalence of stroke risk factors may increase stroke rates in YA. We hypothesized that 1) stroke hospitalizations and mortality among YA are increasing over time (2000-2011), 2) besides traditional stroke risk factors, non-traditional factors are associated with stroke in YA, 3) stroke hospitalization among YA is associated with higher mortality, length of stay (LOS), and cost. Methods: In the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database (years 2000-2011), adult hospitalizations for AIS and concurrent diagnoses were identified by ICD-9-CM codes; the analytic cohort constituted all AIS hospitalizations. We performed weighted analysis using chi-square, t-test, and Jonckheere trend test. Multivariable survey regression models evaluated interactions between age group (18-45 vs. >45 years) and traditional and non-traditional risk factors, with outcomes including mortality, LOS, and cost. Models were adjusted for race, sex, Charlson’s Comorbidity Index, primary payer, location and teaching status of hospital, and admission day. Results: Among 5220960 AIS hospitalizations, 231858 (4.4%) were YA. On trend analysis, proportion of YA amongst AIS increased from 3.6% in 2000 to 4.7% in 2011 (p<0.0001) but mortality in YA decreased from 3.7% in 2000 to 2.6% in 2011, compared to 7.1% in 2000 to 4.6% in 2011 (p<0.0001) among older adults. Non-traditional, especially behavioral, risk factors were more common among YA, and LOS and cost were higher (Table). Conclusion: There was a trend for higher proportion of YA among AIS hospitalizations, though there was a decreasing mortality trend over 10 years. Behavioral risk factors were more common among YA, and there was an increased length of stay and cost. AIS in YA may require different preventive approaches compared to AIS among older adults.

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