Wellness as catalyst for productivity

A state of complete physical, mental and social well-being for workers has been identified as critical plank and foundation for sustainable growth in public and private establishments.

This was the unanimous agreement amongst discussants and panelists at BusinessDay Workplace Health & Wellbeing conference which held at Four Point By Sheraton Hotel, Victoria Island on Thursday, March 5 with a theme: Establishing Linkages among Health, Productivity, and the Bottom-Line.

In his welcome address, Dr. Ogho Otiti, the managing director, BusinessDay Media Group emphasized that the maiden edition of the health  conference couldn’t have come at a better time in view of the outbreak of Coronavirus disease which currently causes  panic across the globe with Nigerian and other countries already battling with index cases.

He explained that about 2.8 million people die in work places annually with insufficient understanding on how to handle health challenges. He added that In Nigeria, for instance, sickness, deaths and accidents occur in workplace, saying that they don’t just occur but are caused by human errors and insufficient understanding on how occurrence can be averted and managed.

Kieran Godden, Chief Executive Officer, Total Health Trust, THT, in his opening presentation, agreed with Otiti. He stressed on the insufficient measures available in workplaces to mitigate and manage sickness, deaths that are prevalent.  He submitted  that “our aim of being in Nigeria is to make  the country healthier.”

 He listed early start and late finish at work, long commute, limited relaxation and poor diet as partly responsible for innumerable cases of ill health and deaths in work place. He advised management to close ranks with workers, create flexible work hours  and promote cordial relationship through effective communication to promote wellness in work places with profitability as end results.

Similarly,  Obinna Ekezie, Chief Executive Officer of Wakanow as well as Chairman, Consolidated Hall Mark Insurance offered that sustainable transport service and health insurance for staff are modest ways to addressing wellness challenges. Hilda Kabushenga Kragha, Chief Executive Officer,  Jobberman Nigeria maintained that job security and welfare package  can appropriate the psyche of workers for more productivity and happiness .

As a remedy, Sola Akinyosoye,  Olufunke Amobi  and Esther Akinnuukawe of  Nestle Plc,  Stambic IBTC and MTN respectively stated that physical, emotional, environmental  and social wellness are of specific concerns to their management, stressing that there are specific  health initiatives in their various offices with laid out time, days and seasons for  routine participation by  all members of staff for wellness and productivity.