Professional Development

Susan Drinnon received her Bachelor’s degree in business from Kansas State University. Since becoming our onsite wellness expert, she has continued her education by participating in the Wellness Council of America. Susan has participated and completed nine of the certificates available through WELCOA.

Demonstrated Success

Our most successful wellness event has been our Walktober Challenge, which addressed the issue of physical inactivity in the work place. Team members were encouraged to get up and walk at least once a day for 15-30 minutes. They were encouraged to form teams and keep track of their steps or miles to qualify for weekly gift card drawings. The outcome of the challenge has brought everyone together, and has helped everyone feel great while getting to know their fellow team members a little better. We have also introduced healthy snack options in the break room, along with daily motivations on how to make healthy choices. All of this is possible of course with the support of our executive team. They encourage everyone to take advantage of the opportunities to walk, work out in the onsite gym and help to cover a good portion of the costs for healthy snack options. We have also partnered with our health insurance provider to survey our team members on what options would work best for them, and what would motivate them to participate the most. Susan has received several letters thanking her for all the work she has done to make it easier for everyone to be involved.

Leadership                                        

Susan’s leads us all by example. She makes healthy food choices while being the first to get out and participate in any wellness challenges that are rolled out. She offers encouragement and advice for those who ask. She feels that the webinars she’s been able to participate in through Welcoa have been the biggest help in the success of our wellness program. She wants to impart the wisdom she’s gained over the years to help educate others on what the consequences could be when you make unhealthy choices.

Innovation

Part of the process to promote wellness and to incentivize people to make healthier choices was to change some of our policies in regards to health care coverage. In order to receive a discount on your health insurance you have to be a non-smoker or smoke free for at least six months prior to open enrollment. We have also taken away the junk food we used to raise money for various charities, and replaced them with healthy snack options such as fruit, and vegetables. We also offer our employees free oatmeal to get their days started off we a nutritious breakfast, to aid in productivity.

Compelling Vision

The obesity epidemic and increase in type 2 diabetics are a definite threat if we don’t actively change our eating habits and activity levels. By actively educating and practicing healthier lifestyles we have the opportunity to make a difference for future generations. Susan plans to pursue results oriented programs to encourage healthy lifestyles amongst our team members, their families and the communities that we serve. We have already begun to make an impact within our company through our wellness program “Fit for Life”. We have a committee of “Wellness Champs”, as we call them, that meet once a month to develop ideas for healthier living and also participation improvement.