Free toolkit helps small- and mid-sized employers support their employees and family members, offering best practices for all
CHICAGO – Nov. 13, 2017 – Almost 30 million people in the U.S. have diabetes. One in 4 are undiagnosed – a great concern to employers faced with a workforce in declining health because of diabetes and obesity. To help employers address this critical issue and offer access to best practices and high-quality industry resources and materials, the non-profit Midwest Business Group on Health (MBGH) launched a Diabetes Management in the Workplace Toolkit.
The resource was developed for small- and mid-sized employers that have limited resources and opportunities to manage the chronic condition of diabetes among their employees and their family members. The toolkit offers recommendations and an action plan to address program, educational and messaging gaps for diabetes management, especially in the work environment. The toolkit also offers employer case studies from organizations such as Pitney Bowes, Procter & Gamble and the State of Minnesota. MBGH is making it available at no cost to any employer or employer coalition across the country.
“Now is right time to release this resource, not only because November is National Diabetes Month, but because many employers continue to struggle with effectively managing the incidence of pre-diabetes, diabetes and related chronic conditions with employees and family members,” said Cheryl Larson, MBGH vice president. “Many are looking for low or no cost tools to support their efforts, especially if their health plan or vendors are not offering effective programs. We know that the average working adult spends thousands of hours every year at work, but rarely visits the doctor and employers have a unique opportunity to use the workplace to engage employees in managing their health. And it’s more important than ever for employers to focus their programs around delaying or preventing the onset of diabetes in their workforce.”
Diabetes management webinar
To offer an overview of the Diabetes Management in the Workplace Toolkit, MBGH is hosting a webinar on Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2017 at 2:00 pm Central. Additional details and registration information can be found here.
Several MBGH employer members reviewed the toolkit with one indicating, “This is an excellent and comprehensive toolkit! Navigation is simple for use with any size employer and reference materials and links that allow for deeper dives. This can really help small to mid-sized employers get a handle on managing workers with diabetes, while giving them the tools and the right questions to ensure health plans and vendors are doing the right thing.”
About the Midwest Business Group on Health
MBGH is one of the nation’s leading non-profit employer coalitions of 130 mid, large and jumbo self-funded public and private employers, representing over 4 million lives and annually spending over $4 billion on health care. Members consist of leading health benefit professionals, with activities focused on education, research, benchmarking and community-based initiatives that increase the value of health benefits and health care services. MBGH is a founding member of the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions. www.mbgh.orgView Press Release