Quality Criteria
The criteria for the health management quality system are descripte in this chaper.
Health management is the combined effort of employers, employees and society. This is included in the Luxembourg Declaration on workplace health promotion in the European union in 1997. The International Institute for Health Management and Quality (iHMQ) wants to promote the systematic attention to improve the health of employees in organizations.
The quality criteria for health management in this document are based on the Luxembourg declaration. A number of European organizations have adopted the Luxembourg declaration and joined their forces in the iHMQ and are constantly improving their health policy.
Expectations
If health management measures are implemented, staff members tend to have high expectations of the success of these measures. Managers hope for economic advantages through lower absenteeism and accident rates, increased efficiency and motivation, higher quality and productivity, improved corporate image and greater satisfaction of customers, lower personnel stress, an improved working atmosphere and fewer work related health complaints. Health promotion is supposed to "pay dividends" for organizations. The ratio of cost and benefit must be in line with the organization’s other investments, too. Only when the effectiveness and efficiency of the health promotion measures are ensured there is a realistic opportunity that health management will develop into an integral part of the company’s policy.
Assumptions
By drawing the criteria for health management it is assumed that the statutory provisions on occupational health and safety were already fulfilled. The criteria taken together are a description of an ideal situation. Reality is unlikely to exist like wise. However, the criteria provide an outline how to establish a healthy organization with healthy personnel. They offer a comprehensive framework for the construction of a modern health policy and make it easier for organizations to determine where they stand in the process and how far they are from achieving their ultimate goals.
Since companies use different resources and requirements, the criteria cannot and should not be considered as an absolute yardstick. The aim is to determine how well the organization performs in relation to their own goals. Organizations should regard their existing health promotion measures as good practice, even though they may not have satisfied all the criteria, they at least represent a step in the right direction. What really matters is the continuous improvement of the health policy of the organization. To reach higher.
The quality criteria
The quality criteria formulated here are based on the model of the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM). The criteria were divided into nine sectors which, taken together, produce a comprehensive picture of the quality of health management activities:
- Leadership & Health policy
- People’s responsibility for health
- Policy & Strategy
- Partnerships & Resources
- Processes
- People results
- Customer results
- Society results
- Key performance results on health
Health management activities are often not sufficiently integrated into structures and routines of the organization. Therefore they often remain isolated. Even successful projects are not passed on to other sectors within the organization or established on a permanent basis. Another deficiency, which often leads to the failure of health management measures, is the lack of prior needs assessment of the organization’s requirements. When the criteria are used, emphasis is placed on the extent to which the activities are pursued systematically and on the degree to which they are integrated into the organization. For this purpose the improvement and learning cycle, as pictured in the scheme, is very important.
The nine aspects for health management and quality are described in more detail below.
1 Leadership & health policy
The success of health management depends on its recognition as a vital managerial responsibility and integration into existing management systems.
A The organization has a written corporate philosophy on health management.
This corporate philosophy can be part of the strategy of the organization, the quality or OSH (occupational safety and health) policy or part of specific working conditions.
B The health promotion measures are integrated into the existing structures and processes of the organization.
Think of inclusion in the OSH policy of the organization, on the agenda of the works councils or of management meetings
C The organization provides enough resources for health management.
This can be budget, staff, rooms, further training possibilities.
D The organization management regularly monitors the progress of health promotion measures.
Communicating with the works council and the occupational safety and health service can do this.
E Health issues are an integral part of training and retraining (especially regarding the management).
Such as courses on how to do job evaluations or dealing with stressed employees. Health should be a part in these courses.
F All staff have access to important health-related facilities.
Such as canteen, toilets, sports amenities, information meetings, ergonomically healthy workplaces.
The most important task of health-promoting human resources and work organization is to consider the skills of the organization personnel. The crucial factor for the success of health management is that all employees are actively involved as much as possible in planning and decision-making. It is important to emphasize that not only the managers are responsible, but that employees also take their responsibility on health.
A All staff have the skills (including health-related skills) which they need to perform their work or they are given the opportunity to acquire these skills.
Such as a course on time management, stress management, courses to improve their teaching skills, support by the occupational safety and health service.
B The work is organized so that organization personnel avoid being overtaxed or that too little is demanded of them.
Such as efficient team meetings, self steering teams, good possibilities for cooperation with colleagues, sufficient possibilities for taking a break.
C The organization personnel are not only offered possibilities for personal career development, but such development possibilities are specifically created through work organization measures.
Such as job-rotation schemes, variable tasks, sabbatical leave or doing a course.
D All staff are given the opportunity to actively engage in workplace health matters.
Such as: participation in working groups, participating in surveys, suggestion box.
E The management supports their staff and promote a good working atmosphere.
This can be done by making available time, money and facilities, by being a role-model as manager and by being committed to health management.
F The organization takes action on the reintegration of staff (especially disabled staff) when they return to work after a longer-term period of sick leave.
For example by adapting tasks, workplaces and/or working hours, adapted transport and informing colleagues.
G The organization takes measures to make working life more compatible with family life.
Such as flexible hours, taking parental leave and the possibility of working at home.
3 Policy & Strategy
Health management is successful if based on a clear concept which is continuously reviewed, improved and communicated to all staff.
A The health promotion measures embrace the entire organization and are communicated to all sections.
Each member of the organization personnel is being informed about new health-promoting initiatives.
B The health promotion measures are based on a careful and regularly updated analysis which is based on health-related information.
Such as work stress, health indicators, subjectively perceived complaints, risk factors, accident rates, occupational illnesses, absenteeism due to illness, expectations of all stakeholders in the organization, especially those of the staff.
C The entire workforce is informed about all health management projects by means of internal public relations work.
This can be achieved via the staff magazine, intranet, and personal letters to all employees, bulletin boards, leaflets, staff meetings and informing new organization staff.
4 Partnerships & Resources
Another crucial factor for the success of health management is whether and how the organization fulfils its responsibility in dealing with its environment. Social responsibility includes the role of the organization at local, regional, national and international level regarding its support of health-promoting initiatives. The social responsibility results can be divided in people results, customer results and society results. The former two results are described in detail at key results of health management (criteria 9).
A The organization has taken clearly defined action (e.g. through an environmental protection management system) to avoid practices which are detrimental to people and environment.
Such as ISO-certification, environmental management, safety rules.
B The organization actively supports health-related, social, cultural and welfare initiatives.
The organization takes an active and leading role in its community, is involved in charity sponsoring activities
C Corporate social responsibility is embraced by the organization
Attention for the environment of the organization is important. Also participation, quality of work and healthy life are priorities of CSR.
D There is an active policy on health protection and promotion of subcontractors/suppliers
The responsibility for healthy working environment not only concerns the own employees but also external people and visitors on the site .
E Purchase administration on raw materials is available
Insight in possible effects of components or half fabricates to the health of employees.
F There is a policy on waist
Attention for recycling for paper, not using plastic cups (or recycle them), using the public transport, contracts of lease cars etc.
5 Processes
Health management comprises measures for health-promoting job design and the support of healthy behaviour. It is successful when these measures arepermanently interlinked and systematically implemented.
A There is a steering committee, project group or something similar functioning within the organization which plans, monitors and evaluates the health promotion measures. AII health-related key functions in the organization are represented in this body.
In this body the following groups can be represented: management, HRM or personnel department, group leaders, employees, representative advisory board, occupational safety and health service.
B Target groups and quantifiable objectives are set for all health promotion measures.
An example of a quantifiable objective is to make the organization building smoke-free within a year or that 20% of the employees cycle to organization. Target groups can be all smokers, certain departments, employees with a certain function or certain complaints.
C Measures for health-promoting work organization and job design as well as measures to promote healthy behaviour are implemented and interlinked.
Measures need to create a healthy work environment and also promote healthy behaviour of organization personnel. Healthy food supply in the canteen can be combined with information about healthy food to employees. When introducing a smoking policy it is recommended to offer support to smoking employees with quitting smoking.
E All measures are systematically evaluated and continually improved.
You can for example repeat the analysis of health-related information as described under criterion 3b. It is important to evaluate the effects as well as the process of measures for health management. Based on the evaluation adaptations can be made.
6 People results
A number of short, medium and long-term indicators can measure the success of health management.
Evaluation of the effects of:
A Skills development programme
B Stress management measures
C Organization measures
D Activities undertaken
E Managerial support
F Reintegration program
G Work-life Balance policy
H Participation and individual responsibility
I Impact on employee satisfaction
Such as satisfaction concerning working conditions, work organization, leadership style, possibilities for participation, occupational health and safety schemes. These are systematically analyzed and conclusions drawn from them.
7 Customer results
A health policy is highly important for an organization, even more when it results in more satisfied customers.
A Customer satisfaction is evaluated on a regular basis
B Impact of the implemented health promotion measures on satisfaction of customers and partners. Opinions of customers are systematically analyzed and conclusions drawn from them. Also the results of the health management policy on the work of partners is analysed.
C Following the analyses, the corporate health policy is adjusted to the results on customer satisfaction
8 Society results
Organizations are part of a larger system. The location of the site of office is built, the social structures in which the organization operates et cetera.
A The effects of corporate health measures on the surrounding society and environment is systematically determined
This concerns effects at local, regional, national and international level. And considers burdens as energy (heat), smoke, noise, smell, traffic etc.
B The effect of the company’s activities on the development of areas in which it is located are clear and monitored
C The effects of company participates in vocational education programmes are evaluated and used for new policy
This concerns new generations to be educated for work and participation in education programmes of the organization.
D The company’s sponsoring activities are evaluated
Not only of the benefits for the sponsored ones but also the return of investment for the own organization on the topic of health (for example free use or reduced prices of sport amenities for own employees by sponsoring sport organisations etc).
9 Key performance results on health
This concerns indicators for health, involvement of employees and professionals and effect on economic results.
A Systematically evaluation of effects of corporate health measures on health indicators
This concerns the impact on absenteeism rates, accident rates, improvement in stressful working conditions, number of suggestions for improvement submitted and implemented, use of healthy lifestyle programmes, level of relevant risk factors etc. These are systematically analyzed and conclusions drawn from them.
B Professionals are acknowledged in the health policy
Professionals (internal and external) are involved in planning decision making and implementation
C Impact of the implemented health promotion measures on relevant economic factors
This concerns staff turnover, productivity, cost/benefit analyses etc. These are systematically analyzed and conclusions drawn from them.