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The road to wellville: residents of Wellsburg, West Virginia improve their lifestyle and health

American Fitness, Nov-Dec, 1996 by Martin P. Detels

According to a new study just completed by PacifiCare Wellness-Company in cooperation with the Bayer Company and Stanford University, a comprehensive wellness intervention program can produce long-term and sustaining health benefits throughout a community. "In 1988, Wellsburg, West Virginia had one of the highest rates of heart disease in the country," says Karen Behnke, president of PacifiCare Wellness Company. "Since initiating a preventive health education program seven years ago, the residents of this county were able to significantly reduce their blood pressure, weight and cholesterol while increasing their physical activity and healthy eating habits. But more importantly, these residents were able to maintain decreased risks for heart disease five years after the program ended."

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The study included screenings of 1,000 residents and a comprehensive health education and fitness program for the entire community. "I think the key to the success of the program is that individuals have learned to be more productive and energetic," says John Bertram, administrative director of the Brook County Health Department that serves Wellsburg. "You don't have to coach our people; they are out walking regularly on their own or with a partner."

Wellsburg is a rural American community with a county population of 27,000. Sixty percent of the population is more than 20 years of age. Community leaders were unanimous when surveyed in the 1995 follow-up study, saying that they were "healthier people" than before participating in the wellness program.

In 1995, PacifiCare Wellness Company returned to Wellsburg to see if residents had sustained or improved their new healthier lifestyles since the formal program ended five years earlier. Residents took a series of follow-up tests including a screening for major health risk factors and a written health appraisal.

"We've gone into schools and worksites and tried to bring the wellness message to workers and school age children," comments Sue Bertram, director of the Wellsburg Community Health Program and one of the community leaders who helped the residents keep up their healthy habits. "We still have a water aerobics program three times a week and ongoing walking and exercise programs. The smoking rate has decreased dramatically among junior high and high school students and faculty members."

Others agree commitment is key. "The true success of any corporate or community focused wellness program is whether the participants maintain their new lifestyles after the health professionals leave," says John W. Farquhar, Ph.D., professor of medicine and health research and policy at Stanford University and lead analyst for the 1995 study. "The residents of Wellsburg have impressively been able to sustain their new health habits.

"Cholesterol levels, body weight and general risk for heart disease are all close to what they were when the PacifiCare Wellness team left town in 1990, and much better than when they initiated the program in 1988," adds Farquhar. "The retention of these improvements is extraordinary when you consider that in the beginning these individuals had significant risk factors."

To lower the risk of heart disease, the American Heart Association and PacifiCare Wellness Company recommend people who work on lowering risk factors monitor their cholesterol, fat intake and blood pressure. They also recommend quitting smoking, exercising four times a week for at least 30 minutes and keeping weight proportionate to height.

Studies have shown wellness programs can save companies and municipalities millions of dollars per year in health care costs. Birmingham, Alabama began a wellness program in 1984 and now saves $2.1 million per year in health care costs. The New England Journal of Medicine reports that for every dollar invested in health promotion, companies receive a return of $3 or greater. This return is documented through decreased absenteeism, reduced hospital, outpatient and health costs, reduced Workers' Compensation claims, and increased employee productivity and good health.

PacifiCare Wellness Company is one of the largest employee wellness providers in the United States. The company works with communities and corporations to lower employers' health care costs and enhance employee health. This is accomplished through assessing the current health risks of employees and conducting positive programs that educate, promote and reward employees who strive to make healthier lifestyle choices.

PacifiCare Wellness is a subsidiary of PacifiCare Health Systems, one of the nation's leading managed health care service companies. For information on how to start your own community or corporate wellness program, call (800) 967-WELL for a free pamphlet.

Martin P. Detels, MPH, is project manager for PacifiCare Wellness Company.

The road to wellville: residents of Wellsburg, West Virginia improve their lifestyle and health

American Fitness, Nov-Dec, 1996 by Martin P. Detels

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