Digital Wellness Programs in the Workplace: Meta-Review

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Digital Health Interventions
• Evidence Synthesis

Background:

• Corporate wellness programs increasingly leverage digital technologies for employee health promotion.
• Digital wellness programs (DWPs) deliver health interventions via digital tools, but research is fragmented.
• Existing literature on DWPs spans various health domains, necessitating a comprehensive synthesis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize research on the efficacy and acceptability of employer-provided DWPs.
• To map the research landscape, summarize findings, identify gaps, and disseminate knowledge on DWPs.
• To assess the impact of DWPs on employee physical health, mental well-being, behavior, and absenteeism.

Main Methods:

• A meta-review of 29 review articles published between 2000 and 2023.
• Searches conducted across MEDLINE, PsycINFO, ProQuest Central, and Web of Science Core Collection.
• Inclusion criteria focused on reviews of digital health interventions in nonclinical employee populations, assessing efficacy and acceptability.

Main Results:

• Mental health was the most studied domain (19 reviews), followed by physical activity (8) and weight management (6).
• DWPs demonstrated efficacy for health-related outcomes (e.g., stress, weight) and acceptability, but gaps exist in durability and mechanisms.
• Fewer reviews addressed organization-related outcomes like burnout and absenteeism.

Conclusions:

• Digital wellness programs show promise across diverse health domains for employees.
• Further research is needed to explore the durability of outcomes and underlying mechanisms of behavioral change.
• Practitioners should utilize current evidence while acknowledging literature limitations in DWP implementation.