The following is an excerpt from our White Paper. There is a link to download the full report at the bottom of this page . . .
A Sound Investment in Employee Health, Safety & Wellness
Your Most Valuable Asset . . .
Employees are the lifeblood of an organization. Without them, nothing happens. There is no innovation, no production, no services provided, no invoices, and no one to receive payments. You need them, and you need them at their very best. It is through their contribution that an organization achieves and exceeds its operating goals.
The facts however, tell a somber story. The majority of employees in North America are not performing to their potential.
Today’s Challenges
Absenteeism
Every week, over a half million Canadians miss work due to illness or injury. The cost to Canadian business is enormous, exceeding $50 B annually due to mental health concerns, including workplace stress.
In fact, there are many other reasons for absenteeism.
While the cost of absenteeism is significant, it pales in comparison to the cost of presenteeism, lack of engagement, accidents, and turnover.
Presenteeism
Presenteeism is defined as “workers being on the job but, because of illness or other medical conditions, not fully functioning”. We believe that presenteeism is actually a much broader problem than just illness. Our definition for presenteeism is when an employee is physically at work, but mentally absent. Illness, and the foggy mind that often accompanies an illness is just one reason.
Engagement
Engagement is a concern for employers across the planet. The United States and Canada lead the world with 31% of workers who are engaged. However, we also have 17% of workers who are actively disengaged, and 52% who are disengaged.
Actively disengaged employees aren’t just unhappy at work — they are resentful that their needs aren’t being met and are acting out their unhappiness. Every day, these workers potentially undermine what their engaged coworkers accomplish.
The Real Cost
The following data is based on Canadian national averages, and it reflects the costs as a percentage of total payroll.
| Absenteeism | 4.3% | (10.0 days average lost time ) |
|---|---|---|
| Presenteeism | 34% | (varies, but 3 to 10 times absenteeism cost is typical) |
| Disengagement | 5.8% | (17% of workforce x 34% annual salary cost) |
| Accidents | 2.9% | (6.9 days lost per employee) |
| Turnover | 8.9% | (17.8% average turnover x 50% annual salary cost) |
This average cost to Canadian business is in excess of 21.9% of the total payroll, and when you include losses to due to presenteeism, the costs often exceed 55%. Remember, these are averages, and half of Canadian business sees even higher costs; costs that come directly off the bottom line of every Canadian business, large or small.
There are Options
Studies have shown that an effective wellness program makes sound economic sense, with typical ROIs of between 340% and 600%, with some companies seeing even greater returns . An effective Safety, Health and Wellness program consists of the following elements:
Health And Safety
A well managed program coupled with initiatives supported by WCB can significantly reduce premiums compared with poorly managed companies that pay up to six times more.
Health And Wellness
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines: health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. The WHO states that “there is no health without mental health.”
THE FACTS ARE UNDENIABLE.
ORGANIZATIONS WITH EFFECTIVE HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELLNESS PROGRAMS CONSISTENTLY OUT PERFORM THOSE THAT DON’T.
The Next Step
There are really only three choices:
- You can integrate Health, Safety, and Wellness into a program within your organization because it’s the right thing to do for your employee’s well-being.
- You can integrate Health, Safety, and Wellness into a program within your organization because it’s the right thing to do for your bottom line.
- You can maintain status quo. By doing nothing, you acknowledge that you are willing to accept sub-average margins, reduced employee performance, and higher turnover.
The Sound Wellness Institute was created to support the needs of corporations and individuals to achieve their highest potential.
We can help you create a snapshot of where your organization is today. From that snapshot, we are uniquely qualified to help you develop systems unique to your needs, designed to strengthen and grow your most valuable asset.
To download a copy of this white paper, please complete the form below, and you will be sent a link to download it immediately.
Nancy Addison’s focus is on an optimal diet that will supply the basic needs of the body and fortify the body’s defenses, thereby improving health, increasing vitality, delivering greater longevity and preventing diseases associated with aging. These include heart disease, age-related muscle loss and fat gain, memory loss, dementia, Alzheimer’s, arthritis, and the physical effects of aging.
When you give your body the right tools, it can do miraculous things!
When we play music together, there is a battery of hormones released by the nervous system, including Oxytocin, the bonding hormone, Dopamine, the ‘feel good’ hormone, Immunoglobulin A (IgA) an important immune system antibody, Serotonin, which regulates the sleep/waking cycle, and Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), Growth hormone (GH), and B-endorphin (B-EP), all helpful in supporting our immune function. 
There is a growing body of research that documents the benefits of gratitude. Experiments have confirmed an immediate increase in happiness, reduction in depressive symptoms, and increased wellbeing. These benefits have lasting effects on the brain and the individual.
We all have our own perceptions. It has been said that there is no one truth for our individual truths have been coloured by our perceptions and beliefs, our upbringing and past experience – just as our vision is coloured when wearing a pair of sunglasses.
Tibetan Singing bowls were traditionally used as an aid for a meditation practice, but they do much more. The slow repetitive movement of the playing stick creates an instant physical relaxation response, while calming emotions and focusing the mind, so there is greater access to creative solutions and inspiration. The Tibetan Singing Bowl can act like the restart button on the computer. They are natural stress-busters that can stimulate the natural healing ability of the body.
However, it can be easily suppressed by stress, by fatigue, or illness, with short term and long term consequences.
There are always distractions in an office environment. From the sound of a phone ringing, conversations in the hall, or a photocopier, or printer working away to name but a few. The distractions are compounded as more businesses shift to cubicles, which have been shown to reduce productivity by up to 60%. 
Brainwave entrainment is a thousands of years old practice.
In 1998, Robert F Furchgott, Louis J Ingnarro, and Ferid Murad won the Nobel Prize in Medicine for the discovery that our cells puff and release nitric oxide. Nitric oxide, is a gas that acts as a signalling molecule in the body. Since its discovery, the U.S. government and the pharmaceutical medical complex have spent hundreds of million of dollars investigating this gas. As a result, medications are now widely available to support cardiovascular disease, and others.
Let’s take a look at the software that handles stress or relaxation. The autonomic nervous system has 2 divisions that work like a teeter-totter. One division takes control, and the other yields. And then the other takes control.
There are two sides to our autonomic nervous system – the sympathetic (fight or flight) system whose purpose is to protect, and the parasympathetic (rest and digest) system whose purpose is to restore health.
Building on the ‘Office Fitness’ module, we look at ways to bring fitness home. There are many ways to incorporate an easy to follow fitness program, from walks to swimming, to shoveling the driveway. They all come with the benefit of supporting a healthy body, one that is more resistant to disease, one that has the energy to do things with friends and family, and one that strengthens performance. 
Keeping the mind and body well oxygenated is essential for peak performance, yet sitting for extended periods reduces blood flow in the upper body, with the corresponding drop in oxygen to the brain. Using deep breathing techniques, coupled with simple movement that can be done in the office, oxygen levels can be restored, invigorating the body and mind. 
Mindfulness has a significant impact on communication and safety. It is a proven way to reduce stress and improve health (physical, emotional and mental), thereby reducing absenteeism. 
One of the most powerful tools you have to navigate through everyday life is your voice. It is one of those things that, like air, is always there, but we pay little attention to it. Your voice is your communication center. And it communicates both verbally and non-verbally. Your voice communicates from many different aspects of who you are.