A national health forum in Atlanta last Tuesday featured a presentation on a local non-profit’s wellness program.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) presented Midland Empire Resources for Independent Living’s (MERIL) workplace wellness program at the Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO) conference.
They featured MERIL’s Wellness 4U program, which was created to increase the overall wellness of MERIL employees and members of the community. Dr. Dyann Matson Koffman, a health scientist at the CDC, presented the program at the forum on behalf of Deann Young, the chief human resources officer at MERIL.
“We were excited to be selected to talk about our wellness initiatives at the HERO forum,” Young said. “It was a great opportunity to share the lessons we have learned from designing and carrying out our wellness activities, as well as to learn about the strategies other wellness programs have found to be successful.”
MERIL’s wellness program includes activities for healthy eating, regular exercise, social connection, and raising awareness of health issues. In 2013, MERIL was selected to participate in the CDC’s National Healthy Worksite Program, which allowed the organization to collaborate with the CDC to develop and evaluate its wellness program.
As a center for independent living, more than half of MERIL’s employees are individuals with a disability. Maria Brandt, a leader on MERIL’s wellness committee, said it is important for wellness information to address the specific challenges faced by those who have a disability and those who are aging.
“Through many successes – and a few setbacks – we have learned how to present information to our employees and community members and how to design programs for them in ways that will keep them motivated and engaged in making healthy decisions,” Brandt said. “That’s our goal with our wellness program, and it’s an important part of our commitment to independent living in Northwest Missouri.”
Find out more about MERIL and its resources at www.meril.org and at 816-279-8558.