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All WellCert graduates are enouraged to complete a minimum of 2 CE modules each year to keep the learning process continuing. Each module takes approximately 1 hour to complete.
These training modules feature slides with audio presentations covering key topics in Worksite Wellness. Note: Completion of a brief online quiz is required for CE credit. Learn more and access these courses via the course category buttons to the right.
Our CE Courses
| Title | Description |
Consulting Series |
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| Useful Frameworks for Wellness Consulting | We introduce six high impact frameworks and constructs for use in wellness consulting. This CE learning module is designed for use by those who are consulting or providing leadership to others around the topic of employee wellness. Beginning with background on the wellness industry, we cover the role of effective frameworks for use in consulting and problem-solving. |
Evaluation Series |
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| ROI Deep Dive | More than you ever wanted to know about the ROI of worksite wellness programs. In this CE module, we examine definitions, summarize the current economic return literature for worksite wellness programs, and explore the key variables that indicate a wellness program’s ROI. One of the key takeaways of this CE module is the sheer volume of peer review studies that document the economic return of employee wellness programs available for use by wellness professionals. |
| Methods for Measuring ROI | A concise overview of the various methodological options for determining the ROI of wellness programs. This CE module provides a detailed look at the various methods that can be used to measure the economic return and ROI associated with a worksite wellness program. Beginning with an exploration of why ROI is critical to worksite wellness programming then 8 different methods are presented for determining the economic return of a worksite wellness program. |
| How Worker Health Effects the Bottom-Line | This module provides a detailed look at the primary economic axioms that define worker health. These economic axioms are likely to drive future investment in human capital. Beginning with the many insights provided by research studies of the relationship of health risks to health costs a number of important insights and their implications are reviewed. |
| Evidence for the Bottom-Line Impact of Wellness Programming | This module takes a detailed look at the economic efficiency of Worksite Wellness with a special focus on health plan, sick leave, workers’ compensation, disability management and presenteeism costs. A historical perspective is provided along with the significant appearance of a very recent meta-analysis from three Harvard economic researchers. The evidence is then characterized and implications are discussed. |
| How Worker Health Impacts Organizational Economics | This module provides a clear look at the key economic axioms applied to employee health from an employer’s point-of-view. Beginning with a discussion that identifies the major kinds of costs associated with employee health and the relationship of health risk factors to those costs. Then the concept of “compression of morbidity” is introduced as a core strategy for wellness programming that has a direct impact on the economics of worker health. |
Industry-Specific Series |
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| Well-Being Strategies for Healthcare Provider Organizations | A hard look at the health care industry and the unique challenges and solutions for wellness providers. This CE module covers the issues involved in providing wellness programming to health care workers. This module defines health care workers as working in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and includes all the support staff of the health care system operation. Health plan and health care delivery workers are considered health care workers. |
Influence Series |
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| What to Tell Leaders About Bottom-Line Impact | This module examines the likely level of economic return and ROI that a typical worksite Wellness program will generate along with some general axioms about estimating ROI based on the program’s model. The three major program models are used as one set of reference points for considering an economic return. In addition, the concept of “under-promise and over-deliver” is offered along with its rationale. |
| Understanding the Values and Attitudes of Organizational Stakeholders | This module examines the major economic stakeholders involved in employee health and their respective interests and concerns. Part of the “economic perspective” is to examine systematically the major “stakeholder” groups that are important in the planning and implementation of an employee wellness program. Eleven (11) types of major stakeholders are identified along with their primary role, primary interest, secondary interest, likely initial response to wellness and key analytic questions that can help you sort out stakeholder concerns. |
Overview Series |
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| Welcome to Results-Driven Wellness | A pragmatic look at the wellness field and why we need to move to Results-Driven Wellness. This CE module begins with a descriptive overview of the worksite wellness industry, mentions the absence of a standard definition of wellness, and a discussion of why effective wellness programs are so difficult to achieve. The three major wellness strategies or program models are then described along with a hierarchy of desirable program results. |
| Defining Wellness and Well-Being | This module examines the various major definitions of Wellness, the core concepts and values and the attributes of a good definition for Wellness. It provides a perspective for the wellness practitioner of how to position the concept of wellness in the development of a wellness program and how to be specific enough, yet not limiting in what future activities would be appropriate to provide within the wellness program. Finally, a number of important questions are addressed; a self-quiz on major points contained in the module is made available along with an explanation of answers. |
| How Wellness Programs Create Behavior Change | This module examines some of the findings concerning the behavioral effectiveness of Worksite Wellness programming. Beginning with a set of eleven kinds of literature reviews that were published in the American Journal of Health Promotion and then moving into a discussion of some of the implications of more recent studies. A framework for program effectiveness developed by Michael O’Donnell is then presented called the AMSO framework. |
| Business 101 for Wellness and Health Professionals | This module provides the fundamentals of economics for those with limited background in economics or who need a refresher. Economics is the study of resources and how they are allocated. As such it also deals with issues of production and consumption and particularly the interplay of price with demand and supply. |
Planning Series |
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| Maximizing the ROI of Your Wellness Programs | Ways to maximize your program’s ROI. This CE module explores how to maximize economic return for your employee wellness program, including 2 key definitions, a visual conceptual model for ROI, and the discussion of 10 major strategies for maximizing economic return within your employee wellness program. These strategies include program intervention strategies as well as methods to enhance the employee participation levels of your wellness program. |
| Securing Program Results Through AMSO | Ways to make your program more effective in producing long term behavior change. In this CE module learn about AMSO, a powerful construct that helps assure the effectiveness of employee wellness programs. Learn how important the hierarchy of wellness program results is to wellness professionals and what the AMSO construct can contribute. |
| Getting the Most from Your Coaching Process | A practical look at getting the most behavior change impact out of wellness coaching. In this CE module learn the basic characteristics of wellness coaching and a rationale for telephonic coaching, where it fits in the context and continuum of core intervention components and protocol elements common to all coaching interventions. Also covered are the complementary modalities and the technical issues that need attention in getting the most effectiveness from the coaching process. |
| Incentive Deep Dive | An in-depth look at the use of incentives in worksite wellness programs. This CE module takes a deep dive into the use of incentives in employee wellness programs. Beginning with a coherent rationale as to why incentives are necessary in employee wellness programs you will be able to explore the key terms and concepts that underlie incentive use and also to understand the pro’s and con’s of incentives in the context of employee wellness programming. |
| Wellness Program Strategy Overview | This module provides an in-depth look at each of the three major program models for Worksite Wellness: the Quality of WorkLife Model, the Traditional Model and the Population Health Management Model. The main features, general value and typical program configurations are discussed along with programming implications and relationship to program goals. The three models also have very different implications for behavioral change, risk mitigation and economic return and these are discussed in turn. |
| Choosing Your Program’s Strategy and Model | This module provides an in-depth look at each of the three major program models with emphasis on requirements, potential effectiveness, likely results and resource implications. A suggested process for selecting the “right” program model is offered along with a discussion of the key management questions that should be answered in arriving at the best choice of program model for your organization. Also, the implications of each of the three models are offered along with some tips on the choice of a model. |
| New Ideas for Making your Program more Effective | This module provides specific direction and details for assuring that your Worksite Wellness program will be effective at changing behavior, mitigating health risks and producing an economic return. A multi-component approach is suggested to help guarantee that your program produces the results that you and your senior management expects. Each part of the strategy is discussed in turn and the balance of activity is also addressed. |
| Selecting Targets for your Wellness Program | This module provides a detailed look at all the potential behavioral targets and health risks that your Wellness program should address and why. An initial list of ten prevention targets is explored in depth along with some of the activities that would support the desired outcomes associated with each. For each potential prevention target an assessment of their relevance to a set of typical program goals is discussed. |
| Selecting Interventions for Key Wellness Targets | This module provides an in-depth look at the potential program interventions that work best for each major prevention target that your wellness program could address. Beginning with the ten suggested prevention targets, including seven that address chronic disease prevention and three that address acute episode prevention, each is reviewed in turn with a recommendation as to the intervention options that have the best potential to mitigated the observed risk. |
| Shaping Your Wellness Program’s Goals | This module provides a detailed look at the possible goals that you might select for your Wellness program and how those goals will likely shape programming activity. The general categories of program goals include: health improvement, employee participation, employee response to program, economic effects and organizational effects. These program goals should help shape the program as well as become evaluation points of reference. |
| Developing Objectives for Your Wellness Program | This module is designed to provide a step-by-step approach to the development of a set of sound program objectives for your Worksite Wellness program. A variety of suggestions are offered and a set of possible relationships to program goals are stated. The structure and characteristics of sound program objectives are discussed along with a “clinic” opportunity to troubleshoot draft objectives. |
| How to Ensure Your Program Meets Bottom-Line Goals | This module provides an overview of the three major program models for Worksite Wellness and discuses the characteristics associated with each model along with the attributes that “fit” with each model. This module helps provide the strategic and tactical perspective for consideration of the best fit of program model for your working population. The main features and positioning options of each of the three program models are discussed along with some important considerations that should shape the program model selected for each organization. |
| Understanding Health Benefits | This module provides an in-depth look at the technical issues involved in employee health benefits for those with a limited understanding of this area. Beginning with some of the landmark historical events employer-provided health benefits are traced from the early twentieth century up to today’s health care reform Law. Issues of eligibility provisions, basic covered services, cost-sharing structures, health cost management requirements are discussed using a major manufacturer as a sample case. |
| Understanding Sick Leave Absenteeism | This module provides an in-depth look at the technical issues involved in sick leave absenteeism for those with a limited understanding of this area. Beginning with a set of basic definitions and a historical perspective on major developments in sick leave absenteeism, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is discussed on the patterns of accessibility, average days of paid leave per year for various employee groups. The average cost of sick leave absenteeism along with the relationship between major health risks and sick leave use are reviewed. |
| Understanding Workers’ Compensation | This module provides an in-depth look at the technical issues involved in Workers’ Compensation. Beginning with a brief historical overview of the development of work-related injuries and illnesses protections, likely program characteristics and common compensation patterns of practice. Workers’ compensation expense is generally the smallest per employee per year health-related cost, yet it can be 3 to 4 times the average in many types of work organizations with high levels of injury risk. Substantial data exists that documents the additional WC cost associated with specific health risks. |
| Understanding Disability Insurance | This module provides an in-depth look at the technical issues involved in the short term and long term disability for those with limited understanding of this area. A brief history of disability insurance is provided along with a characterization of typical patterns of coverage and benefit levels. The incidence of disability in working populations is identified along with the average cost per employee per year. |
| Understanding Productivity and Presenteeism | This module provides an in-depth look at the technical issues involved in presenteeism related costs. Presenteeism is first defined and its practical manifestations are described. Then the findings of major survey analyses are reviewed and an approximate proportion for presenteeism losses is identified. Presenteeism is placed into context with other health costs and the likely magnitude of typical employers is identified. |
| Creating the Business Case for Wellness | This module covers strategies and tactics for making the strongest economic case for wellness for a specific employer. The core elements of the economic case for worksite wellness are presented along with key enhancement strategies. Issues that have the potential to weaken the economic and business case are identified along with some counter-strategies. |
| Company Data Sources that can Justify Wellness Investments | This module provides proven specific strategies and tactics for obtaining the best organizational data to prepare the business case for worksite wellness for your company. Starting with key demographic data, examples are used to show how best to build a strong case using company-specific data. Insights that contribute to a strong economic case for wellness will be presented and used in examples. Next, health benefits data will be reviewed and the most persuasive data formats will be described along with some key caveats that are helpful in formulating the business case. |
| National Data Sources that can Justify Wellness Investments | This module identifies a very useful framework for requesting and using economic data when starting a new Wellness program. Request strategies and follow-up strategies are covered along with some alternative methods for obtaining needed information. Ancillary strategies for requesting information are offered along with a possible endgame strategy. Stakeholder differences are briefly explored along with likely response patterns. Evaluation versus planning functionality is explored and then a series of suggested “ideal” baselines are provided. |
Trends and Innovation |
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| Integrating Well-Being into Your Program | This CE module addresses how to integrate well-being into your employee wellness program while examining the newer constructs of well-being along with some key definitions, well-being content options, where well-being can be addressed in your wellness program, a recommended perspective on well-being, strategies for incorporating useful related well-being concepts, important questions to ask senior management to get clear direction and possible metrics for evaluation of the well-being modifications and revisions that you make to your employee wellness program. |
| Selected Prevention Aspects of the ACA | A detailed look at the prevention components of the ACA. This CE module provides an in-depth overview of the Affordable Care Act prevention aspects. Beginning with a look at the legislative history of this landmark piece of partisan social legislation along with a summary of the various prevention-oriented legislative initiatives. |
| Growing Importance of Wellness to Employers | This module highlights the underlying trends that are making Worksite Wellness more important to employers and explores some of the implications of these trends for the employer community. The areas addressed in this module include many of the economic and social policy issues that are acting to enhance the actual value and potential value that worksite wellness has to employers. The implications for greater reliance on worksite wellness programming are clear and a number of important questions about these changes are addressed along with a self-quiz opportunity with a discussion of answers. |
| Trends in Employer Wellness Programming | This module covers the results of several major surveys of employer activity around Wellness and then characterizes each major employer sector by size. A perspective for employers who are considering a wellness program is provided along with some of the major pros and cons. The three major program models are discussed and a number of planning axioms are shared. |
| Trends in Health Plan Wellness Offerings | This module examines national patterns of Wellness activity for major health plan customer sectors and projects some major trends that are likely to affect the health plan marketplace. The implications of employer demand are explored along with the likely response of the health plan sector. The real potential of small employer wellness and multiple employer trust wellness is identified and discussed. |
| Big Trends in Wellness | This module provides a detailed scenario of the likely future trends and characteristics of the Worksite Wellness field. These major trends include economic, demographic, social, organizational and governmental. The trends are identified and explored briefly along with any developments that might curtail their long term effects. |
We have created these modules based on your feedback. If you have additional topics or ideas for our CE modules, please contact us using the form below.