Healthy Hearts at work: Prince Edward Island Heart Health Program CSC worksite pilot project

Prince Edward Island experiences a higher-than-average death rate from cardiovascular disease. The Prince Edward Island Heart Health Program is a health promotion/disease prevention research project of Health Canada and the Prince Edward Island Department of Health and Social Services. This paper describes and evaluates a worksite program, based on the principles of community mobilization, that was initiated with the Civil Service Commission of the Prince Edward Island government. The building of a partnership, the risk appraisal session administered in the workplace, the establishment of an Employee Wellness Committee, and subsequent programming which has occurred in the workplace were the key components in the process. Collaboration with the partner agency and participation of employees in the planning process has resulted in the delivery of programs which could not have been achieved by one of the agencies alone, without many additional resources. It is hoped that these characteristics of collaboration and employee participation will also result in sustainability of this initiative when PEI Heart Health is no longer involved.