STAR-VITAL, a Four Year Comprehensive Workplace Health Promotion Program: Study Design

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Public Health Interventions
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Workplace health promotion programs (WHPPs) are effective for improving employee health and reducing employer costs.
• Premature death, chronic disease, and productivity loss can be mitigated through healthy lifestyle initiatives.
• The STAR-VITAL program in Slovenia targets small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to enhance older worker vitality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel workplace health promotion program design.
• To address low participation rates and effectiveness issues in WHPPs.
• To evaluate the long-term health impacts on employees and employers.

Main Methods:

• Multifaceted and individualized program implementation.
• Customer relationship management (CRM)-based participant interaction.
• Impact evaluation using employee health and labor market micro-administrative data.

Main Results:

• The STAR-VITAL program's novel approaches demonstrated effectiveness, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The program design addresses key challenges in WHPP implementation and evaluation.
• Individualized strategies and CRM show promise for enhancing engagement and outcomes.

Conclusions:

• The STAR-VITAL program offers innovative solutions for improving WHPP participation and effectiveness.
• Further research is needed to explore the potential of CRM and individualized interventions in health promotion.
• Micro-administrative data provides a robust method for evaluating program impact.