Have You Ever Wondered What Constitutes High-Risk Status?

The Master Speaks…

These days there’s a lot of talk about intervening with high-risk employees to help them avoid unnecessary illness and disability (not to mention catastrophic health care claims).

But have you ever wondered what specific criteria constitutes high-risk status?

According to the University of Michigan’s Dee Edington, perhaps the brightest mind in all of Health and Productivity Management, high-risk status is calculated by documenting the follow behaviors:

Consumption of more than 14 drinks/week
Blood pressure of Systolic >139 mmHg or Diastolic >89 mmHg
A personal BMI≥ 27.5
Cholesterol greater than 239 mg/dl
An existing medical problem of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, stroke
HDL less than 35 mg/dl
>5 days of illness in the last year
Partly or not at all satisfied with personal life
Fair or poor perception of personal health status
Physically active less than one time/week
Using safety belt less than 100% of time
Current smoker
Self-reported high stress

Once the previous information has been collected, risk status is assigned as follows:

Low Risk=0 to 2 high risks
Medium Risk=3 to 4 high risks
High Risk=5 or more high risks

The Master has spoken.

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Published:: 01.05.09 / 10pm

Category:: HRAs And Health Screening, People, Current Issues In Workplace Wellness, Building a Healthy Workplace

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Have You Ever Wondered What Constitutes High-Risk Status?

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