Business Case Study: Economics of Workplace Health Initiatives

[Department Name]
[Department Address]

Business Case
[Relaxation Training]
Prepared by:
Issue Date:
Version Number:
Note that "Business Case Template Guidelines" have been developed to accompany this template.

Table of Contents



TOC \o "1-3" \h \z Executive Summary PAGEREF _Toc372189121 \h 2
Description of Business Case PAGEREF _Toc372189122 \h 3
Problem / Opportunity PAGEREF _Toc372189123 \h 3
Current Situation PAGEREF _Toc372189124 \h 3
Intervention Description PAGEREF _Toc372189125 \h 3
Objectives PAGEREF _Toc372189126 \h 3
Scope PAGEREF _Toc372189127 \h 4
Anticipated Outcomes PAGEREF _Toc372189128 \h 4
Stakeholders PAGEREF _Toc372189129 \h 5
Strategic Alignment PAGEREF _Toc372189130 \h 6
Environmental Analysis PAGEREF _Toc372189131 \h 6
Alternatives PAGEREF _Toc372189132 \h 7
Impacts PAGEREF _Toc372189133 \h 7
Risk Assessment PAGEREF _Toc372189134 \h 8
Financial Analysis PAGEREF _Toc372189135 \h 9
Source of Funding/Revenue PAGEREF _Toc372189136 \h 9
Cost-benefit Summary PAGEREF _Toc372189137 \h 9
Qualitative Analysis PAGEREF _Toc372189138 \h 10
Assumptions PAGEREF _Toc372189139 \h 11
Conclusions and Recommendations PAGEREF _Toc372189140 \h 11
Implementation Strategy PAGEREF _Toc372189141 \h 12
Review and Approval PAGEREF _Toc372189142 \h 12
Appendices PAGEREF _Toc372189143 \h 12
Section

Executive Summary

1


[Relaxation Training]
This paper presents Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's review of their staff management systems. It entails the effectiveness of promoting workplace management programs, building on a culture of returning to work, as implemented and practiced by the employer. The objectives are to assess the effectiveness of promoting relaxing programs among employees to reduce the rising cases of stress, low productivity, poor work performance, and absenteeism.
The program was developed to promote a healthy working environment and ensure that employees work in an environment that improves their productivity and overall performance. A focus is given to one employee called Joe, who has been absent from work for over four weeks. He suffered from cerebral palsy, exposing him to develop stress, anxiety, and depression that forced him to stop going to work. Because of these symptoms, Joe has developed low self-esteem and difficulties in performing his duties. Such problems are not only singular to Joe but also experienced by a number of his colleagues. The risk of losing their jobs forces them to work in an unhealthy working environment without reporting to the administration.
The paper provides exciting programs to be developed by the company to promote a healthy working environment and ensure that silent issues affecting employees like Joe are investigated and addressed. Issues of job security have forced employees like Joe to continue working in an unhealthy workplace environment where employees are exposed to the risk of depression, presenters, short and long-term disability, and even accidents. Therefore, the intervention to promote workplace management strategies that lead to a healthy working environment is significant to the organization.
Section

Description of Business Case

2


Problem
Description:
A friend of mine, Joe, working with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center as a part-time receptionist and administrative assistant, has not been reporting to work for several days. He has been serving the role for eight months, working for 35 hours a week. I reached out to him to find out why he has not been going to work. Joe told me that the management had given him four weeks to visit his general practitioner (GP) to treat anxiety, stress, and depression. Vomiting and nausea that directly relate to anxiety caused his previous short-term absences. In addition to nausea, Joe was also restless, had difficulties in sleeping, and lost his appetite. His low self-esteem caused rumination, which is attributed to the negative impacts of stress.
Current Situation
Description:
During his early years, Joe experienced walking difficulties due to cerebral palsy. He sought medical intervention on which surgery was conducted on his Achilles tendon and thus improved the situation. However, after surgery, Joe experienced discomfort with residual lower leg when he stood for long hours without resting or if he walked for long distances. The situation meant that an orthopedic team had to continuously monitor his status for one and a half years. He was advised to walk as per his capabilities because this affected improving mental health.
Joe was generally happy with his work and built a strong relationship with his colleague with whom they used to exchange reception duties. However, he indicated that having to face the public daily was quite challenging. In the previous three months, his duties increased because one of Joe's colleagues had resigned, terming the role as stressful and demanding. The facility was then hit by a financial crisis, making it difficult for the vacant position to be filled. This overwhelmed Joe as his duties increased significantly. Joe was primarily based at the reception desk and occasionally stood from his chair to serve customers and conduct some photocopy, filling, and printing tasks. His colleague's departure meant that he had to spend most of the time standing and, thus, caused discomfort in his leg. The facility did not adjust to support Joe's disability.
While being recruited, Joe did not disclose his disability at pre-employment screening (PES) because he considered himself not being disabled for fear of losing the job. The manager wanted to make adjustments, but he turned down the offer. The factors that led to Joe's stress were his daily duties at the reception and amplified by his physical disability. Even though Joe failed to disclose his condition, the employer was responsible for taking care of his needs, which is articulated under the Americans with Disability Act (ADA). Employers are required to conduct a full assessment of employees at the recruitment stage and make necessary adjustments to support them, which in this case, was not done by Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Most of the time, Joe tried to manage his leg discomfort, therefore unable to rest them while at work. The GP is most likely to handle Joe's case very well. However, the facility has to put measures in place to prevent such instances in the future.
Intervention Description
Stress has many negative impacts that directly affect the finances of a firm through absenteeism, health insurance claims, and accidents (Ca, 2011). To solve stress and depression in the facility, it needs to adopt relaxation training, which is a type of behavioral self-management skill designed to affect the physiological experience of stress by lowering physiological arousal and increasing parasympathetic response (Jones et al., 2003). Techniques used in relaxation training include; progressive muscle relaxation (PMR), yoga exercises, hypnosis, mediation or meditative relaxation, and guided imagery. The PMR is usually accompanied by diaphragmatic breathing exercises, which deepens the feelings of relaxation. The PMR is used selectively with disability patients who have chronic pain or muscle or tissue injuries. In meditative relaxation, participants are required to sit in a position where their muscles are relaxed and focus on each other's breath while repeating their sounds. Those who are having difficulties may conduct the exercise while seated in a reclining posture (2003).
Similarly, mindfulness mediation incorporates sensations and mindful awareness by focusing on sound or breath. The participants are advised to be aware of their thoughts regarding their pain or disability without judging the content, thus enabling them to be aware of their responses. Research has found this technique significant in pain regulation and has worked efficiently more than medication, antidepressants, and physical therapy. Instead, this results in decreased use of medical intervention and increased physical exercises. In guided imagery, participants are encouraged to replace their thoughts of pain and distress with peaceful and beautiful images such as movements of water in waterfalls. When participants master the relaxing concepts, they are then encouraged to practice them independently at home (Jones et al., 2003).
Objectives
The significance of stress management programs and their integration at the workplace has become a critical issue globally. The main objective of relaxation training is to decrease nervous system arousal and promote well-being in individual employees. The intervention is aimed at reducing the human, social and economic costs of disability at the firm. Health care and disability programs in a firm can be costly. However, a relaxation-training intervention will not cost much money compared to medical interventions. Provision of relaxation training in an efficient manner will allow employees, employers, and the staff overseeing the intervention to work hand in hand to achieve optimum health and save the facility costs. The intervention will address the individual and organizational factors that will increase worker involvement, assess the stress factors, and evaluate health and coast efficacy measures.
Scope
The firm will formulate a disability management team that will comprise nurses, physicians, psychologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, and social workers who will work together to promote wellness and come up with prevention and safety programs to tackle stress. The team will form an integral role in the implementation of the program. The intervention will kick-start in the next three weeks and will be an ongoing process to ensure continuity. Before a facility for conducting the exercise is built, the physical activities will be conducted in the boardroom or sometimes outside. For most staff members to participate in the program and feel encouraged, the firm will provide incentives such as free snacks.
The organization will ensure newspapers are bought daily, which is enough for the employees. Reading newspapers acts as an effective way to shift the mind of an individual away from stress. A piece of sweet soothing music will also be playing in the background. Music is significant in slowing down the heart rate and diminishes blood pressure, thereby bringing down tension levels to manageable levels. The team will be responsible for innovative ways of conducting yoga exercises and other physical activities essential in relaxing an individual's mind. The firm will introduce methods of eradicating the use of social media on the organization's premises. Social media causes distractions, which might lead to stress. The team will also teach and encourage employees on how meditation. Meditation helps individuals to focus on the present and forget about the past.
Anticipated Outcomes
Outcome

Intervention period

Reduced health insurance claims

6 months

Reduced absenteeism

8 Weeks

Stakeholders
The stakeholders involved are the employers, employees, and government agencies like the ADA.
Stakeholders:

Overview of Business Requirements

Primary – Internal


Employer

Provide adequate financial support for the program
Avail of all the necessary resources for running the program

Employees

Be ready to adapt to change and participate in the program
Follow instru...