Strategies of active dissemination of workplace health promotion
International Journal of Workplace Health Management
ISSN: 1753-8351
Article publication date: 9 March 2015
Abstract
Purpose
A growing body of literature provides evidence for the efficacy of workplace health promotion (WHP). However, little is known about effective dissemination strategies for WHP interventions. The purpose of this paper is to describe how a WHP agency in Zurich, Switzerland, used bulk mailings, information events, telephone marketing and free initial consultations for the large-scale geographic marketing of WHP services, with a focus on tobacco prevention (TP).
Design/methodology/approach
To analyze the number of companies responding positively to solicitation, examine the predictors of positive responses and explore the reasons for negative responses, the authors used both quantitative (e.g. a standardized questionnaire) and qualitative (telephone interviews) methods.
Findings
The results show that except for telephone marketing (69 percent), the success rates of dissemination activities were very low (3-9 percent). Predictors for a positive response were institutionalization of WHP, the representative’s personal concern about TP, and problems with environmental tobacco smoke within the company. The most prominent reason for a negative response was that the companies had already implemented TP measures by themselves and needed no further external support.
Practical implications
It is suggested that TP was the wrong emphasis for a WHP program to be disseminated at that particular time, because a law on protection from passive smoking was introduced in Switzerland shortly afterwards.
Originality/value
The study examines dissemination strategies under real-life consulting conditions. It builds on on a large sample of companies and uses both quantitative and qualitative research methods. It reports specific numbers and success rates of marketing activities and thereby contributes to the knowledge about an important issue for intervention planning in the field of WHP.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the Tobacco Prevention Fund (Swiss Federal Office of Public Health) for funding this study. The authors also thank the following persons for their support: Florine Gafner (questionnaire development and scanning), Greg Jenny and Silvia Deplazes (proposal writing), and Anita Emch and Katharina Lehmann (data collection and project cooperation).
Citation
Friedrich, V., Hoffmann, S. and Bauer, G. (2015), "Strategies of active dissemination of workplace health promotion", International Journal of Workplace Health Management, Vol. 8 No. 1, pp. 3-14. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJWHM-12-2012-0031
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2015, Emerald Group Publishing Limited