As we strategy the top of 2023, we start wanting towards 2024 with pleasure and resolve to do extra for our well being. Fortunately there are Nationwide Well being Observance Calendars available. Curiosity in wellness and its impression on all points of our lives has been rising previously decade. In truth, about 70% of People are extra acutely aware about their well being right this moment. Nevertheless, like in most issues, there are challenges in wellness, too. A survey revealed that 65% of staff lack the time and motivation to concentrate on wellness.
What is required, then, is a way of life that may be applied anytime, so there isn’t any motive to not be wholesome and match. We additionally must do not forget that a wholesome life-style is not only about health. It’s a holistic improvement that impacts psychological, emotional, dietary, religious, and social well being.
Changing into wholesome requires an individual to handle six intersecting elements of 1’s well-being, also referred to as the six pillars of well being:
- Bodily Wellness
- Psychological & Emotional Wellness
- Occupational Wellness
- Dietary Wellness
- Social Wellness
- Monetary Wellness
Wellness within the Office
The clamor for a wholesome life-style has additionally reverberated inside workplaces. Firm administration and homeowners clearly don’t need their staff getting sick on a regular basis. Not solely does it impression productiveness, however it may be traumatic for the worker and have an effect on their morale.
Except for folks being individually involved about their well being, workplaces at the moment are proactively encouraging folks to have a wholesome life-style. Wellness packages are being applied in lots of companies.
For those who need assistance with what packages to implement, you can begin by finding out the Nationwide Well being Observances calendar. However first, let’s dive into the nuances of wellness packages!
What are Wellness Applications?
Wellness packages are campaigns and actions within the office geared towards serving to staff have a more healthy life-style.
Applications fluctuate extensively giving companies many numerous methods to create wellness packages. Listed here are just a few concepts to get you began:
- Instructional sources on find out how to obtain work-life stability
- A Private Well being Evaluation or Well being Danger Appraisal
- Onsite Clinics or Flu shot Occasions
- A exercise space within the office
- Low cost in gyms
- Incentives to take part in bodily actions
- Firm-initiated office competitions
- Weight reduction packages
- Smoking cessation packages
- Onsite cooking demonstrations or courses
- Bike racks within the workplace to encourage folks to bike
- Biometric screening so staff are conscious of their well being standing
- Wholesome snacks within the pantry or wholesome lunch choices within the cafeteria
- Really helpful strolling trails which are secure for workers
Each enterprise will be inventive with its wellness packages. The vital factor is that it gives a well-thought-out and efficient plan tailor-fit for workers.
Companies should additionally present employee-assisted packages targeted on wellness. People who smoke, for instance, could have a tough time quitting. They’d profit from counseling and a program to show them methods for kicking the behavior.
Counseling or well being teaching isn’t only for people who smoke however for different private points as nicely, resembling stress, anxiousness, melancholy, marital issues, alcohol habit, bereavement, and extra.
Wellness packages can be occasions. Corporations can designate a day when staff can have a yoga class or a lunch-and-learns exercise the place the corporate gives a wholesome lunch for the whole workplace and discusses wellness.
How Important are Wellness Applications?
No one desires unhealthy staff. Bodily unhealthy staff are susceptible to absenteeism, which would cut back the enterprise’s productiveness as a complete. Staff with emotional, psychological, and social points could resort to presenteeism, the place they could be current at work, however are usually not working nicely.
Wellness packages, when applied nicely, assist staff obtain work-life stability. It permits them to handle stress in order that work doesn’t get them down. A pressured worker could have low morale, which may have an effect on the morale of the whole office.
Does implementing wellness packages sound difficult? Questioning the place to start out? Nicely, the best method is to have a Nationwide Well being Observances Calendar.
What’s a Nationwide Well being Observances Calendar?
It’s a calendar of the assorted well being observances acknowledged all year long. Most of the observances have been primarily based on sure legal guidelines. These legal guidelines from around the globe paved the way in which for well being observances as a option to educate folks on what the well being subject entails and the way it may be prevented. Most well being observances are for ailments that have an effect on 1000’s or tens of millions of individuals.
There are over 200 well being consciousness observances within the nationwide calendar. Since 2005, the U.S. Congress has launched over 145 payments for the observance of varied well being consciousness. There are additionally month-to-month well being consciousness days, protecting many well being points, from the most typical to the uncommon ones.
Power ailments like diabetes, most cancers, and coronary heart illness are the main causes of dying, incapacity, and healthcare prices within the nation. However what folks ought to know is that they’re induced primarily by dangerous behaviors, resembling poor vitamin, lack of bodily actions, an excessive amount of alcohol consumption, and tobacco use. Practising a wholesome life-style may decrease the chance of changing into a part of the statistics for continual ailments. And since staff spend a whole lot of time at work, it’s the right place to study wellness.
Any office can arrange its personal calendar of consciousness months to make sure everyone seems to be educated about the most typical ailments on the planet. Staff may also spotlight or nominate an observance that’s private to them in order that the remainder of the workforce can pay attention to it. Administration will be inventive with the implementation of a well being calendar to make sure that staff concentrate and interact within the actions.
Necessary Well being Observances to Embrace in Each Office Calendar
As there are dozens of well being observances within the nationwide calendar, you possibly can select to concentrate on only one per thirty days or nevertheless many you like. The vital factor is that the well being observances are purposeful.
The next occasions are a few of the most important nationwide well being observances you possibly can enter in your office calendar and a few of the actions you possibly can attempt:
January: Nationwide Blood Donor Month
Based on the Affiliation for the Development of Blood and Biotherapies, January is understood for blood scarcity. Individuals are typically not as eager on donating blood shortly after Christmas and New 12 months festivities. The chilly season can also be when folks normally get sick with the flu, so they aren’t wholesome sufficient to donate blood.
Introducing Nationwide Blood Donor Month within the office will make staff conscious of the state of affairs. For those who arrange a blood-donating exercise within the office, staff may donate or encourage their members of the family and even neighbors to donate blood. The accessibility and the intention will encourage them.
When you can not power staff to donate blood, you would, nevertheless, encourage them by providing some incentives, resembling a time off or a reduction certificates to a retailer or restaurant. Keep in mind, the inducement is just not what’s vital however the studying and consciousness that comes from the observance.
Different January celebrations:
- Nationwide Beginning Defects Consciousness Month
- Glaucoma Consciousness Month
- Winter Security Week
- Folic Acid Consciousness Week (January 2-10)
February: Black Well being Consciousness Month
Why ought to a cultural occasion be a part of the Nationwide Well being Observances Calendar? As a result of it is a wonderful alternative to boost consciousness of the various ailments that have an effect on the Black group and the well being disparity between Black folks and their counterparts.
Based on studies, African People have the next danger of experiencing the next:
- Bronchial asthma
- Most cancers
- Diabetes
- Coronary heart illness
- HIV/AIDS
- Influenza
- Pneumonia
- Stroke
A chunk of well being analysis reported that life expectance for Black folks was solely 70.8 years in comparison with 76.1 years amongst White folks, 77.7 years for Hispanic folks, and 83.5 years amongst Asian folks. Causes for such discrepancy embrace unemployment, poverty, homelessness, failing to see a physician, weight problems, and an unhealthy life-style.
Celebrating Black Well being Consciousness Month will assist Black colleagues be extra conscious of the ailments that will impression them, they usually, in flip, can share the knowledge with their household and pals.
Different February celebrations:
- Nationwide Most cancers Consciousness and Prevention Month
- Nationwide Put on Purple Day (February 2 – to boost consciousness about coronary heart illness in girls)
- Cardiac Rehabilitation Week (February 11-17)
- Cardiovascular Professionals Week (February 11-17)
March: Office Eye Wellness Month, Mind Consciousness Week, World Sleep Day, Take Down Tobacco Day
March is a treasure trove of month-to-month well being consciousness days, together with:
- Office Eye Wellness Month
- March 13-19 – Mind Consciousness Week
- March 17 – World Sleep Day / March 12-18 – Sleep Consciousness Week
- March 31 – Take Down Tobacco Day
All these occasions assist make a more healthy worker. The Office Eye Wellness Month is essential to all staff who should spend hours in entrance of the pc. The American Academy of Ophthalmology has outlined a number of greatest practices to take care of wholesome eyesight, which might be a wonderful useful resource for each office. Amongst them are the next:
- Take a break and disengage from the display screen.
- Look 20 toes away for 20 seconds each 20 minutes to stop eye pressure.
- Use eye drops to stop dry eyes.
- Use protecting eyewear.
All sorts of work want the mind to operate, so it’s also very important for workers to concentrate on the various research concerning the organ. Understanding find out how to handle the mind can also be helpful in stopping problems like Alzheimer’s, melancholy, Parkinson’s, schizophrenia, and stroke. One option to handle the mind is to get high quality sleep.
Sleep is so vital there are two occasions for its consciousness–World Sleep Day and Sleep Consciousness Week. Sleep will enable you relaxation the mind and the physique so you might be revitalized the following day, which can assist you turn out to be extra productive. Corporations can present tricks to get the correct quantity of sleep for a more healthy thoughts and physique.
Lastly, there’s Take Down Tobacco Day, which is about taking down the tobacco trade. However the firm could make it about “kicking (cigarette) butts” to have a smoke-free office with wholesome staff.
Different March celebrations:
- Nationwide Vitamin Month
- World Listening to Day (March 3)
- World Oral Well being Day (March 20)
- World Water Day (March 22)
April: Nationwide Stress Consciousness Month
Each individual on the planet experiences stress. It’s not essentially the stress that’s the drawback however how folks handle it. Furthermore, there’s a sturdy connection between stress and productiveness. Harassed folks can hardly work due to anxiousness and even melancholy. Most individuals are pressured due to work and cash. So, it is smart that employers assist their staff handle stress.
Wellness packages assist staff turn out to be more healthy by way of bodily actions and a balanced and nutritious weight loss program. These are two issues that may assist folks with stress. The reality is that stress consciousness must be noticed each month within the Nationwide Well being Observances calendar to remind folks to take a breather.
Different April celebrations:
- Parkinson’s Consciousness Month
- Nationwide Public Well being Week (April 3-9)
- World Well being Day (April 7)
- Earth Day (April 22)
- Worldwide Noise Consciousness Day (April 24)
Could: Excessive Blood Strain Consciousness Month
Most individuals know what hypertension or hypertension is, however the statistics about it are nonetheless staggering. Based on the World Well being Group, near 1.3 billion folks on the planet have hypertension, and two-thirds of them are from low- to middle-income nations. About 46% of them are unaware they’ve it. Hypertension can also be stated to be a significant reason behind untimely dying.
What makes hypertension an even bigger drawback is that it results in numerous different situations:
- Aneurysms
- Dementia
- Eye issues
- Coronary heart assault/stroke
- Kidney points
- Metabolic syndrome
One of many higher information relating to hypertension is that it may be preventable with a wholesome life-style, which is the true objective of wellness packages.
Different Could celebrations:
- ALS Consciousness Month
- Nationwide Bronchial asthma and Allergy Consciousness Month
- Pores and skin Most cancers Prevention Month
- World Hand Hygiene Day (Could 5)
- Lung Most cancers Motion Week (Could 8-14)
June: Males’s Well being Month
Your entire month is Males’s Well being Month, whereas June 12-18 is Males’s Well being Week. Why is there a necessity to emphasise males’s well being? As a result of they’re much less prone to tackle healthcare than girls. It’s all rooted in perceptions of masculinity and manhood. With that in thoughts, it turns into much more essential for workplaces to focus on males’s well being each June.
The next are a few of the well being points frequent amongst males:
- Power obstructive pulmonary ailments
- Diabetes
- Erectile dysfunction
- Coronary heart-related ailments
- Liver illness
- Lung most cancers
- Prostate most cancers
- Sexually transmitted an infection
- Stroke
Different June celebrations:
- Nationwide Security Month
- World Setting Day (June 5)
- Nationwide Lightning Security Consciousness Week (June 18-24)
- Mosquito Consciousness Week (June 18-24)
July: Juvenile Arthritis Month, UV Consciousness Month, World Hepatitis Day
July is the month with the fewest well being occasions save for December. Nevertheless, one famous celebration is Juvenile Arthritis Month, which helps elevate consciousness of the illness that will have an effect on a few of the staff’ youngsters.
UV Consciousness is one other vital consciousness observance as a result of individuals who journey to and from the workplace are uncovered to the solar’s ultraviolet rays, the primary reason behind pores and skin most cancers.
A whole lot of tens of millions of individuals worldwide endure from Hepatitis, which has three varieties: A, B, and C. Hepatitis A and B are preventable as a result of they’ve vaccines, whereas Hepatitis C is just not. Many have heard of the virus or illness however are unaware of what they really are. Staff may study so much from an annual observance of the difficulty.
Different July celebrations:
- Excessive Warmth Consciousness
- Sarcoma Consciousness Month
- Wholesome Imaginative and prescient Month
August: Nationwide Breastfeeding Month
Your entire month of August is Nationwide Breastfeeding Month, and August 1 to 7 is World Breastfeeding Week.
When the office units apart a month to debate the significance of breastfeeding, the staff, composed of moms and non-mothers from all genders, could be extra accepting of breastfeeding moms in public. They will additionally share what they discovered with different folks to focus on the significance of breastfeeding and cease mother shaming.
Different August celebrations:
- Kids and Youth Preparedness
- Psoriasis Motion Month
- Nationwide Immunization Consciousness Month
- Protected and Sound Week (August 14-20)
September: World Suicide Prevention Day, Nationwide Suicide Prevention Week
Many world well being days are celebrated in September, and suicide is one subject that individuals shouldn’t ignore. It’s going to reverberate within the household, amongst kinfolk, and within the office. Colleagues who expertise suicide within the household or amongst pals, typically have issue coping mentally and emotionally. Observing World Suicide Prevention Day (September 10) and Nationwide Suicide Prevention Week (September 10-16) will assist folks perceive the difficulty higher.
Within the U.S. alone, 48,000 died by suicide in 2021. That very same yr, an estimated 12.3 million folks considered suicide, whereas 3.5 million made a plan and 1.7 million tried suicide. A wholesome life-style may achieve this a lot in decreasing the chance of tried suicide due to the holistic impact on an individual.
Different September celebrations:
- Wholesome Growing old Month
- Nationwide Meals Security Schooling Month
- New child Screening Consciousness Month
- World Environmental Well being Day
October: Breast Most cancers Consciousness Month
Breast Most cancers Consciousness Month is among the many most well-known well being consciousness days worldwide. On this month, folks put on pink, which is already a clue about what you are able to do within the office. Breast most cancers is the second main reason behind most cancers dying amongst girls, with pores and skin most cancers on the prime. Over time, breast most cancers deaths have been steadily declining, and it’s not far off to say that the notice occasions, which began within the Nineteen Eighties, have actually labored.
Different October celebrations:
- Kids’s Well being Month
- International Handwashing Day (October 15)
- World Meals Day (October 16)
- Nationwide Well being Schooling Week (October 16-20)
- Nationwide Lead Poisoning Prevention Week (October 22-28)
November: Nationwide Diabetes Month
Diabetes is one other well being subject that persons are conscious of, however a whole lot of tens of millions proceed to expertise it yearly. It’s a harmful illness that may result in issues like blindness, coronary heart assault, kidney failure, limb amputation, and stroke. Then once more, it is a illness that may very well be prevented by residing a wholesome life-style.
Based on the World Well being Group, the next can assist forestall diabetes:
- Keep your ultimate physique weight
- Be lively for at the very least half-hour a day
- Eat a nutritious diet and keep away from sugar and saturated fats
- Keep away from smoking
It’s such a big well being subject that November isn’t simply Nationwide Diabetes Month; it’s also Diabetic Eye Illness Month, and November 14 is World Diabetes Day.
Different November celebrations:
- American Diabetes Month
- Diabetic Eye Illness Consciousness Month
- Lung Most cancers Consciousness Month
- Nationwide Wholesome Pores and skin Month
December: Handwashing consciousness week, World AIDS Day
It’s no secret that December is the time of yr everybody appears to have a sniffle, cough or fever. Handwashing has been confirmed to sluggish the unfold of many frequent sicknesses so it makes good sense that the primary full week of December is Nationwide Handwashing Consciousness Week.
Attempt these initiatives in your office to have a good time and guarantee correct hand washing:
- Beautify your toilet like a birthday celebration to encourage and remind people to scrub so long as it takes to sing the blissful birthday track!
- Present quite a lot of cleaning soap choices for customers to select from. Individuals will make the most of the correct quantity of cleaning soap when they’re drawn to the scent.
- Place key or very important info within the toilet and encourage people to scrub fingers whereas they “assessment the doc or assembly password from the lavatory mirror” for instance.
- Carry out hand washing drills all through the day. A couple of instances every day, sound a particular alarm and permit a 5-10 minute break encouraging all staff to go wash their fingers.
Whether or not you discover these examples foolish or intelligent, they may present the chance and reminders folks want to make sure frequent and correct handwashing is accomplished.
Since 1988, World AIDS Day has been noticed each December 1. And since fall and winter are additionally flu season, December 5 to 9 have been designated Nationwide Influenza Week. Many workplaces have a good time the Christmas season in December, however injecting some well being consciousness into the festivities remains to be good.
Different December celebration:
- Nationwide Influenza Vaccination Week (December 5-9)
- Crohn’s and Colitis Consciousness Week (December 1-7)
Conclusion
Wholesome staff end in a productive office. A wholesome life-style is a product of schooling and consciousness. It isn’t too late for corporations to start out a well being and wellness marketing campaign. To try this, you possibly can make the most of an in-house Nationwide Well being Observances Calendar to assist staff turn out to be extra conscious of the most typical well being points within the nation. There are literally thousands of ailments on the market, and bringing consciousness to a dozen or extra may enable you kickstart a wholesome life-style within the office.
