Nutrinut
Bridging the gap between employee wellness and
Nutrition
September 12, 2014
Amanda Cunningham
Kristina Lopes
Meredith Louko

Review Southcoast Employee Wellness: Virgin Pulse









What it is
Who’s eligible
How it works
Statistics on weight loss and comorbidities
Nutrinut
The role of a Media Dietitian
Cost Analysis
SWOT
How this affects Southcoast?
Let’s Set the Scene
In 2013 approx. 4,500 employees were
apart of the Southcoast Health Plan. Of
those 4,500:
 4% were classified as morbidly obese
 25% were classified as obese
 33% were classified as overweight 10
Employee Wellness:
 Creating a healthy work environment for employees
to prosper and increase employee wellbeing:





Increases productivity
Decreases absenteeism
Reduces overtime use for covering absent employees
Decreased training costs for new staff to replace old
Decreases health care costs ***
What is Virgin Pulse?
A rewards program that works like a frequent flier
program, only you don't get rewarded for flying. You
simply get rewarded from the healthier decisions you
make and the more HealthMiles points you earn!
Get Healthy by Tracking:
● Physical activity – Max Activity Tracker
● Sleep
● Nutrition
At Southcoast Health
Virgin Pulse On-The-Go
Who’s Eligibile at Southcoast??
Reference: Southcoast Info Sheet Virgin Pulse 2015 PDF
w to earn points
Reference: How to Earn HealthMiles Points PDF
Reference: How to Earn HealthMiles Points PDF
Southcoast Virgin Pulse App:
 Uses Max Activity Tracker to track:




Calories expended
Activities
Active minutes
Sleeping patterns
 Challenges you and others to take part in your own online
challenges
 But is lacking one important piece…….
Obesity is not the
only concern among
Health Plan
members
Top 3 comorbidities among Health Plan members:
Apart from BMI
● High blood glucose levels
● High blood pressure
● High cholesterol
What we know:
 Excess weight is related to an increase risk in
comorbidities.
 In 2010, 35.7% of Americans were obese
 2013, 25.8 million Americans (8.3%) have diabetes
 2013, 77.9 million, 1 in 3 Americans have high
blood pressure 4
Why do we care about weight?
● According to the CDC approx. 112,000 deaths
are associated with obesity each year in the
United States 5
● Per year, obese individuals spend an average of
$1850 more in health care costs than nonobese individuals 8
● Morbidly obese people spend up to $5500 per
year more in health care costs 8
Benefits of weight loss:
Studies show that even a 5-10% decrease in weight
significantly improves:





Lipoproteins
Hypertension
DM/insulin resistance
Risk for osteoarthritis
Risk of certain cancers and other chronic diseases
To achieve/maintain a healthy weight, two major
factors are involved:
● Nutritious diet
● Physical activity
Currently, Southcoast has
partnered up with Virgin
Pulse to challenge employees
to get active and get moving.
By incorporating a nutrition
aspect into the program we
can get employees even
further on the right track.
Nutrition Stats
 In a 2011 study, researchers proved that diet alone
was more successful in weight loss than exclusive
exercise 5
 However, the combination of diet and exercise
provided the most significant results
 Demonstrating that in order to maximize weight
loss, nutrition is a key component to Virgin Pulse
It’s All About Balance
Nutrinut
● Provides employees with nutrition
expertise through a licensed and
credentialed Media RD to establish:
● Personalized experience
● Expert advice
● Individualized recommendations
● Virgin Pulse provides businesses with
resources such as MyFitnessPal for an
additional cost
Media RD:
Promotes employee wellness through food and nutrition
Bridges the gap between Virgin Pulse and Nutrition
24 hour, part-time position
Employee will be able to access the Virgin Pulse account
on Southcoast Intranet through a provided laptop
 Will be able to work from home or at an on-campus site.




RD Key Functions/Responsibilities
Establish the nutrition component to Virgin Pulse:



Web design of Nutrition page
Works closely with IT to implement behind the scenes tech support
Attends proper training classes for Web Design
RD Key Functions/Responsibilities
In charge of all nutrition initiatives on Southcoast Virgin Pulse
Website
 Mandates weekly nutrition group discussion boards and provide
written feedback at the end of each week.
 Create bi-weekly webinars and quizzes available on the website.
 Answer any daily nutrition-related questions through email
RD Key Functions/Responsibilities
Establish nutrition alerts for Virgin Pulse app
through:
 Mobile Device
 Southcoast Email
 Southcoast Health Stations
Create Marketing Material for Nutrinut
throughout hospital via:
 Posters
 Visual displays for cafeteria TVs
 Computer Screen Saver: Nutrition Tips
RD Key Functions/Responsibilities
Refer employees to outpatient RD services:





Develop easy-access to Outpatient RD services on Virgin Pulse Website
and App for employees to learn more about available resources
Diabetes Management Program
Weight Management Program
Bariatric Program
CHF Clinic
RD Key Functions/Responsibilities
Design and implement monthly wellness topics
 Write monthly newsletter for Nutrition Topic of the Month
 Displayed on homepage of intranet
 Develop bulletin board that is related to monthly wellness
topic
 Select two Wellness meals each month to be sold in cafeterias
that relate to Nutrition Topic of the Month
 Provide recipe recommendations for wellness topics each
month
RD Key Functions/Responsibilities
Establish Wellness Wednesdays at Southcoast Facilities:
 Wellness topic promoted every Wednesday, alternating at each Southcoast
site.
 Provide nutrition information on tri-fold poster board, handouts and
interactive activities based on the monthly topic.

Create Wellness Wednesday meals that will be placed on cafeteria menu.
 Provide and hand out free samples for employees to try as they walk into the
cafeteria.
Ways to earn reward points!
Employees can check in and scan barcode
to reward them with points.





Check-in Booth once a month - 100 points
Wellness Wednesday Booth - 50 points
Signing up for bi-weekly online webinars - 10 points each
webinar
Completing weekly quizzes - 8 points each quiz
Weekly check-in at Health Station - 5 points
Local Competition
 Virgin Pulse- Nutrition component


More money for Southcoast
No RD provided


Extra cost to employees
No affiliation with worksite wellness


Additional cost to use
No RD visit provided


Added cost for employees
Too far to drive for RD services
 Weight Watchers
 Nutrisystem
 A Healthy Balance
Start-up costs:
 Wellness displays, check-in booths, activities and food










samples: $1020
Part time Media RD yearly salary - $36,000.00 @ $30/hr
Barcode system for employee points - $255.00
Travel Expense- $200.00
Business laptop with traveling case and business cell phone
- $1,200.00
Advertisement: Free through social media, intranet
Nutrition Care Manual - $0.00
Webinars and online cooking demos - $0.00
In-person cooking demos - $ 120.00 per demo
Food models - $0.00
Business cards - $20
One Year Cost Projection
Operating Expenses
Part- time salary RD $36,000.00
Supplies Expense
$2,655.00
Travel Expense
$200.00
Total Expenses
$37,535.00
Funding:
 Southcoast Health Plan
 Wellness grants
As previously stated:
Of the 4,500 Southcoast Employees on
the Health Plan:
 4% were classified as morbidly obese

180 employees
 25% were classified as obese
 1125 employees
 33% were classified as overweight
 1485 employees
How does this affect Southcoast Funding?
Given that the average difference in health care cost between an
obese individual and a non obese person is $1850 and the cost
of Nutrinut is $37,535.00;
X = # of Employee
Y = cost of obesity = $1850/person
If Southcoast Health pay ⅔ health care premium,
Total company health care cost = X x ⅔ (employee premium)
When employees lose weight through nutrition counseling,
SH savings = ⅔ ($1850)
savings = $1233
Return on Investment:
In order for SH to break even on their investment,
Nutrinut would have to generate a savings of
$37,535.00
Breakeven= $37,535/ $1233
= 31 Employees with weight loss
% Nutrinut involvement = 31 Employees / 1125
Employees classified as obese
= 2.7% involvement
Plan of Action:
 To ensure the Health Plan has a return on
investment:



Nutrinut will target 30% of the employees classified as obese
to get involved
This will generate a guaranteed savings from the 2.7% obese
employees
Overall, leading to a cost savings for Southcoast Health
SWOT Analysis
SWOT: Strengths
 App friendly, easy-to-use
 Helps Southcoast Employees
~62% of employees apart of the Health Plan
 4% morbid obesity, 25% obesity, 33% overweight
Already contracted with Virgin Pulse - majority of the program is already
developed
Known target audience - Southcoast Employees participating in the Health
Plan and Virgin Pulse
No additional cost to the employee
Potential cost deduction to Health Plan
RD - nutrition expert and provider to monthly wellness education






SWOT: Weakness
- No available space - onsite location
- Minimal funding available
- Poor employee engagement
- Past Health Quest Initiatives
- Hiring externally - time needed to establish rapport
- Lack of productivity due to travel time
- Additional time needed to educate and inform employees
SWOT: Opportunities
- Ability to expand
- RD counseling provided under Southcoast Employee Health Plan
- Initiative to help decrease employee weight-related comorbidities
- Franchising abilities
- Possible connections to Weight Management and Bariatric Team
- Grants
and more importantly…. it creates community wellness!
SWOT: Threats
- Southcoast facility no longer has an account with Virgin Pulse
- Attraction to other weight loss solutions (Nutrisystem, Weight
Watchers)
- Other “nutritionists” available on social media with no license
or credential
Let’s wrap things up:
% Obesity

Review Southcoast Employee Wellness: Virgin Pulse









What it is
Who’s eligible
How it works
Statistics on weight loss and comorbidities
Nutrinut
The role of a Media Dietitian
Cost Analysis
SWOT
How this affects Southcoast?
Conclusion
 Obesity is an increasing concern
 Through nutrition and fitness, greater weight loss
is achieved
 Nutrinut will be the link for Southcoast to cut
health care costs and increase employee wellness
References
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Treat and Reduce Obesity Act H.R. 2415 S. 1184, 2014. Chicago, IL. Accessed March 30, 2014.
2. Carmona, R. The Obesity Crisis in America. Surgeon General’s Testimony before the Subcommittee on Education Reform, Committee on
Education and the Workforce, United States House of Representatives. www.surgeongeneral.gov/news/testimony/obesity07162003.htm.
Published July 16, 2003. Accessed August 15, 2014.
3. Chang SH, Pollack LM, Colditz GA. Life years lost associated with obesity-related diseases for U.S. non-smoking adults. [June 18, 2013].
PLosOne. 2013. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3688902/pdf/pone.0066550.pdf . Accessed August 25, 2014.
4. Facts and Statistics. President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition website. http://www.fitness.gov/resource-center/facts-andstatistics/ .Accessed August 25, 2014.
5.
Foster-Schubert KE et al. Effect of diet and exercise, alone or combined, on weight and body composition in overweight-to-obese postmenopausal women. Published online ahead of print August 2012, Obesity. 2012.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3406229/ . Accessed August 26, 2014.
6. Hensrud D. Weight Loss: Which is better for weight loss-- cutting calories or increasing exercise. Mayo Clinic Website.
http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/weight-loss/expert-answers/weight-loss/faq-20058292. Published March 14, 2014. Accessed
August 25, 2014.
7.
Lahiri S, Faghri PD. Cost-effectiveness of a workplace-based incentivized weight loss program. [March 2012]. JOEM. 2012.
http://www.medworkohio.com/pdfs/Cost-Effectiveness%20of%20WorkplaceBased%20Incentivized%20Weight%20Loss%20Program%20JOEM%203-12.pdf . Accessed August 25, 2014.
8. Lifestyle Management of Adult Obesity. School of Health Professions University of Missouri-Columbia Website.
http://shp.missouri.edu/vhct/case2500/benefits.htm . Published March 6, 2013. Accessed August 26th, 2014.
9. Obesity. Cleveland Clinic website. http://www.clevelandclinicmeded.com/medicalpubs/diseasemanagement/endocrinology/obesity/ .
Accessed August 25 2014.
10. Southcoast Annual Health Plan Performance Report. New York, NY. Cammack Health LLC. 2014
1.