Top Tips for Workplace Health

Good health is good business but where do you start? Whether you are starting a new business or looking for ways to boost the health of your staff, here are some top tips.

Encourage healthy eating

Although it’s easy to tuck into comfort food for lunch, or have endless coffee and chocolate at our desks to boost energy, this can lead to health problems such as putting on weight (which can impact your cholesterol levels) feeling sluggish, and not getting enough vitamins and minerals from your diet.

For large workplaces, promote a healthy diet by having a subsidised canteen in the workplace that serves diverse, nutritious and colourful meals during breakfast and lunch. This could include vibrant salad bars, home-cooked main meals and freshly made smoothies, ideal for those who, after a long commute or a stressful meeting, want to unwind with something delicious that won’t break the bank.

For smaller workplaces, even just sharing information about the nutritional qualities of fruits and vegetables is a great way to get started. Having a filtered water cooler, subsidising reusable metal water bottles and organising a free fruit and vegetable delivery to the office are just a few other ideas that you can implement.

Create a sense of community at work

Encourage better mental health and general wellbeing by creating a sense of community within the workplace. This opens up channels of communication between managers and staff and helps to facilitate any difficult conversations that need to be had with regards to health issues. Consider offering work exercise classes like yoga, HIIT, pilates and bootcamps which all members of staff can join. Or, why not enter a charity fundraiser together like a 5K run, 60K bike ride or a Zumbathon?

Have scheduled breaks other than lunch

Regular breaks, even if it’s just for a 10-minute dose of fresh air, can do wonders for the workplace. Ideas for these scheduled breaks include five to ten minutes of mindfulness or guided meditation focusing on breathing and refreshing a cluttered mind. Why not have a technology-free zone full of books, magazines, sofas and music? This is ideal for office members who might need a moment to collect their thoughts and rest their strained eyes.

Keep the workplace hygienic

During the winter – a hotspot of colds, flu and viruses – you need to make sure that your workplace is always kept clean and tidy to avoid the spread of disease and illnesses. Simply employing an office cleaner to spritz, hoover and clean the office daily is a great way to keep on top of pesky bugs.

Promote and encourage personal hygiene amongst your employees. Consider adding soap dispensers or soap bars next to sinks, providing antibacterial hand gel and surface wipes, or even installing showers in the workplace.

Emphasise a work-life balance

Though you want your employees to work hard and meet productivity targets, you also need to be mindful of their work-life balance. Like having a sense of community in the office, simply remembering and encouraging a positive work-life balance will build positive rapport between you and your employees. This can generally help manage stress levels at work, as high-stress environments can be a precursor to a range of mental health problems and can also weaken the immune system.

Keep it a general rule not to email or contact work colleagues out of work hours about work-related issues (unless urgent), and organise plenty of work socials to keep your colleagues feeling chipper at all times.

Bio

Duality Healthis a private healthcare clinic catering to the people of Newry and Dungannon and surrounding areas.