On Friday, June 1, Deputy Secretary of the Maryland Department of Health, Howard Haft, MD, awarded KPMAS a Gold Wellness at Work award for demonstrating outstanding accomplishments in worksite health promotion.
Recipients were congratulated at the 9th Annual Maryland Workplace Health & Wellness Symposium in Baltimore, Maryland. Healthiest Maryland Businesses, the state’s initiative to support healthy workplaces, sponsors the Wellness at Work Award every year. KP was one of 58 employers to receive an award and one of ten to receive Gold out of 22 Capital Region employers.
To be eligible, employers must provide specific activities and examples of policies and tools developed and utilized in the four areas of assessment: planning, management, implementation, and evaluation. To receive a Gold, Silver, Bronze, or On the Path award, employers are required to establish leadership support for wellness, create wellness committees, survey the needs and interests of their employees, set health improvement goals, and develop monitoring tools to track outcomes.
Healthiest Maryland Businesses, launched in 2010 by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, assists companies in creating sustainable and customizable wellness plans, goals, and progress. There are six regional coordinators located throughout the state that aim to provide businesses with personal guidance throughout their wellness improvement journey. To date, more than 270 businesses have signed for this program.
